From CNA to RN, Cecelia has worked as a nurse at Adventist HealthCare Shady Grove Medical Center for nearly ten years. She first started her career journey as a certified nursing assistant (CNA) to get a job in the hospital setting. Learn more about Cecelia’s inspirational career path from CNA to RN in this Employee Spotlight.
What do you like most about your job working in health care?
“What I love most about working in a hospital is I do really like the schedules. I do like working 3 12s. I think it’s great for the work-life balance that we have,” says Cecelia, RN, CCRN.
“I think it’s great for the work-life balance that we have. “I love being able to serve a very wide range of people that are, you know, around in the community. I think it’s beautiful to be able to give care to people at some of their most vulnerable moments.”
Why did you want to pursue a career in health care?
“What inspired me to go into a career in health care was that my brother was diagnosed with diabetes when he was very young, maybe nine. So watching him and him interacting with the nurses, I think a lot of nurses have stories like that, but that’s really what inspired me to go into nursing.”
What’s a behind-the-scenes thing about working in a hospital that most people may not know?
“You become really close with your coworkers! You have a very camaraderie bond with your coworkers. You become very good friends with them. Some of my best friends are, you know, coworkers that I’ve worked with here over the years and it’s really special.”
What’s your go-to comfort food after a shift?
“Chicken nuggets or mac & cheese.”
What is your favorite—or maybe least favorite—hospital slang or jargon that people may not understand?
“A lot of times I think I end up saying E.D. for the emergency department – and when I’m talking to people they’re like, “What’s E.D.?”
And then everyone outside usually refers to it as “The E.D.” but here we always say E.D.
Do you have any advice for anybody who’s been thinking about a healthcare career?
“I had originally wasn’t sure if I wanted to be a nurse. I wasn’t 100% sure. So I became a certified nursing assistant (CNA) so that I could get a job in the hospital setting and see what the pace was like, see what working with patients was like learning how to talk to people.
And then when I became a CNA, I really did fall in love with being here in the hospital and taking care of patients and kind of the fast pace, the turnover, you get to see patients who are sick and then become well over a couple days. So that, that was really nice.
My advice to people is if you’re not sure, just get into the setting.
If you can volunteer, if you can shadow, anything to kind of get into the hospital setting to get an idea of what it’s like.”
Learn more and find available career opportunities available now at JoinMdHealth.org/careers.