Recording of Interview- https://odu.zoom.us/rec/share/TVMhicXVTkVnQPdYTC61tJ6pI4sb8klanl6S-hb8LQkPFt_rB0kkTrdkSfYTPSYv.tJhJEYD99Umz3JSe?startTime=1699375332000
Passcode: nYEFre6@, From ODU to the neuro unit, a story of Mykenzie Jones’ journey to her nursing career.

Summary/reflection- On November 2nd, I interviewed Mykenzie Jones who is a former ODU student. Her job position/title is RN, BSN. Mykenzie works at Sentara, Virginia Beach, General Hospital in the neuro unit. Some of the basic responsibilities she has is assessing patients, hourly rounds, listening to patients, etc. She got into nursing because she knew she wanted to work with mental health, and she felt that nursing would allow her to care for people holistically but also incorporate psychology. She obtained her BSN from ODU, has her CNA license, and she has a NIH certification. Miss Jones, graduated from ODU with her BSN with a job already secured. During her clinicals in the nursing program she did a preceptorship at a behavioral health unit at Sentara, Virginia Beach, General Hospital. When she was doing her clinicals there, her preceptor encouraged her to look at units other than psych which led her to look into the neuro unit. Once she decided that she wanted to work in the neuro unit, her preceptor talked to the manager of the unit about her getting a job on that unit. Due to her preceptor talking so highly of her, she got the job on the spot and got to basically interview the manager of the unit when she went to her interview. She said her favorite part of her job was when she could tell she made a difference in her patient’s lives like if her patients or their families smiled at her or thanked her for doing her job. When she became a nurse, she said the most surprising part of it was all the stuff she didn’t learn while in nursing school. She also said the most challenging part of her career is keeping all of her patients safe at all times. Something I have learned from this interview is that nursing is a very rewarding career, but it is a difficult one. Additionally, some advice she has for anyone getting into the healthcare field is to never lose sight of way you got into the field and to understand when you are going into the field that it is not going to be easy, and some days will be harder than others.