Brenna Selby

“GMercyU nurses stand out, at least in my experience, because we were surrounded by such great teachers who really wanted us to succeed. It is a school where you are not just a number and you are able to form great relationships with both your professors and classmates. Experiences like the DEU and the nursing mission trip to the Dominican Republic I know are big pieces of the nurse I am now, which are opportunities I may not have had if I had chosen to go to a different school.”

Path to GMercyU

Growing up, I always knew I wanted to work in a job where I could care for people. I remember in high school deciding between being a teacher and a nurse. I don’t remember a lightbulb moment when I decided I wanted to be a nurse, it just seemed like the most logical decision for my personality. I always wanted to work with little kids or babies, and a labor and delivery nurse was my goal to be able to combine caring for others and babies into a job.

I originally moved away to a University far from home to start my freshman year which ended up not being a great fit for me. I wanted a school closer to home because of the changing needs in my own family, and GMercyU provided a great Nursing program not far away. I also liked the idea of doing clinical rotations and making connections in hospitals close to home where I knew I wanted to live and work post graduation

Nursing Mission Trip

Overall, I had a great experience in the Nursing program. Although it was one of the most challenging things I have done, I know I am the nurse I am today because I was challenged in Nursing school and it did not come easy to me.

I made lifelong friends, learned so much, and truly felt prepared to not only pass my boards, but to be a good nurse.

When I think back on my time at GMercyU, the first professors that come to mind are those I went on the Nursing Mission Trip with to the Dominican Republic, Professor O’Hara, Professor McCabe, and Professor Warnick. I think I can speak for all of the students who went on the mission trip in saying it was a lifechanging experience, and we all have those three to thank for it.

The time and energy they poured into making a trip like that happen truly shows how much they care for not only their students, but for the Nursing profession. That was by far the best experience I had during my time as a Nursing student and I will forever remember and be grateful for that trip and the perspective it gave, those professors, and the friends I made while we were there.

Clinical & Job Experiences

When I think about my clinical experience as a student, I remember Professor Pallante and Professor Rota. In both hospital clinical and simulation classes, they challenged me to be better and I know I learned so much from them that I still use every day as a nurse.

My first clinical rotation was on Med/Surg Unit at Einstein Montgomery Hospital. On that rotation, I met with the manager of the unit, where we realized she was an old family friend. We then kept in contact and that year I took a job with her as a nurse’s aid, which I continued until I graduated. I then accepted my first job as a new grad nurse on that unit where I worked for my first two years, before moving to a Mom-Baby position also at Einstein.

The opportunity I had there for clinical opened doors for a job as a student and has continued to lead me to each of my positions at Einstein over the past 7 years. I also had great experiences at Paoli, Abington, Holy Redeemer, and Grand View hospitals.

During my senior year I also was able to do a rotation in SCI Phoenix Prison. It was certainly an opportunity that I was nervous to do, but I am so glad I did. It is not a position I ever see myself working in as a nurse but the clinical rotation gave me an opportunity to experience something not many get to, entering a maximum security prison and caring for inmates. It is also something that I feel helped me in my Nursing practice, because we care for prisoners often in the hospital and it have great insight into what their life is like when they leave the hospital. Overall, I feel that I had great clinical experiences and am grateful for everything I learned each place I went.

Dedicated Education Unit

I participated in the Dedicated Education Unit (DEU) program during my senior year and had a great experience. I was on the Mom/Baby Unit at Einstein and was able to work with some great nurses, who I now work with every day. The DEU seemed like a great opportunity to get one-on-one shadowing with a nurse, get to follow their schedule, and be able to work with the same nurse every clinical day. There are benefits to group clinical experiences as well, but I felt that being one-on-one and really getting to know the nurse I was working with was a great way to learn and really get to see what real nursing is like.

The opportunity opened doors for me to make connections in a hospital I was interested in working in. I was able to form great relationships with the nurses I worked with as well as the manager of the unit, which I do think helped me get the job I always wanted that I have now as a mom/ baby nurse. It also solidified that it really was what I wanted to do as a career.

It is a great experience to get to offer students because it allows them to transition from a group clinical setting to more of what it is going to be like for them when they accept their first nursing job and are on orientation. They get to get 1:1 teaching and get to start to really get a feel for what a nurse does in a 12-hour shift.

Now that I am a practicing nurse, I decided to become a mentor in the DEU program because I believe in paying it forward. I did this program as a student and remember how much it meant to have nurses willing to take me in and teach me.

It's pretty cool to have started as a DEU student five years ago and to now me working on that exact unit with the chance to mentor a new student. I know In the craziness of our days as nurses it can be a lot of work taking on students or new grad nurses, but we were all in that position at one point when we were just starting out, and we all remember the nurses who were kind and willing to help us learn.

In a world where the nursing profession has changed in so many ways and we have seen so many nurses leave the profession through the pandemic, we need to encourage new nurses to love what they do and show them there are nurses willing to help them succeed.