by Phoebe Farris ’20

The Coronavirus pandemic is something that is already having a huge impact on the healthcare system, and we can only imagine what the future of this field looks like. Now, the need for health care professionals is more evident than ever. Hospitals in areas heavily impacted by the Coronavirus pandemic are filled to capacity, having to bring in workers from less affected areas of the country. Countless healthcare workers are putting their lives in jeopardy every day to care for patients with both COVID-19 and other ailments that need tending to.

As a future college student and aspiring health care professional, I have been getting many questions when I tell people that I want to be a nurse. The questions people ask are usually along the lines of “Has the coronavirus pandemic changed your mind about your profession at all?” which have made me reflect on our current situation and what the future holds for me and other students looking to pursue healthcare. Through this reflection, I developed my own answers, but I was curious what my fellow classmates in similar situations had to say.

As frightening as this pandemic has been, the students I talked to are choosing to stand firm in their future career choices. One factor that has helped students is reflecting on what inspired them to go into healthcare in the first place. Morgan Dunn, who will be attending the University of Florida in the fall, mentions that she originally wanted to go to medical school, but  “after having Ms. Parsley as a teacher and working in the nursing home with the residents, I realized I loved the patient care aspect and wanted to work more directly with patients than a doctor would.” Dunn, who was a part of The Academy of Health Professions at Sherwood, continued to say, “I want to dedicate my life to helping others, and this pandemic has made me more sure about my major than ever before.” 

A similar sentiment was shared by Kirstyn Collins who is pursuing a five-year physician’s assistant degree at Seton Hill University. “PAs can often spend more time with patients than doctors but are still the ones to treat them,” said Collins, who like Dunn wants a more hands-on relationship with her patients. 

Adian Dwyer is planning on majoring in biology with a pre-med track at San Diego State University. He has “an interest in plastic surgery” and that “it has been a long time dream of [his] to work with Operation Smile,” an organization that provides surgeries for children to help correct cleft pallets. “I just want to help however I can,” said Dwyer

Inspiration seemed to be a common driving force as I continued to talk to my classmates. “Those in the medical field dealing with the pandemic right now are risking their lives every single day for the good of the community and it’s truly inspiring” explained Dunn.

Dwyer agreed, saying that he just wanted to get involved and encouraged others to think about joining the next generation of healthcare workers. “This should just be an inspiration to peruse healthcare positions because we are very clearly lacking the staffing to handle something like this.”  

Another thing that has had a major impact on these students is the outrage at the unpreparedness in combating this pandemic. Collins’ dad specializes in IV therapy and works with patients in both hospitals and nursing homes. While talking with her, she mentioned that “[Her] dad went to a nursing home that had a  COVID patient, and they weren’t using proper isolation techniques, because they didn’t know what to do and he had to show them. That nursing home is now down to 20 percent of its staff,” recounted Collins. “It’s scary how unprepared we are.” However, she is trying to remain optimistic and hope that students seeking a medical career “won’t give up on their dreams out of fear.”

It is evident that things will never quite go back to normal, but how we adapt to that is what will have the biggest impact. It is encouraging to see so many young people encouraged to join the healthcare workforce. Hopefully, others are as inspired and continue on their path because healthcare workers will always be in high demand as proven by this pandemic.