January 14, 2009

Hi Gary,

I graduated! My nursing program's pinning ceremony took place on December 19th at a local church. Pinning ceremonies are a right of passage in nursing programs. You are given a pin to wear that designates the program you graduated from. Mine, of course, is green and gold and says, "BU (Baylor University), Louise Herrington School of Nursing." In the past, pinning had to be done by a nursing instructor or a fellow RN (Registered Nurse). That's no longer the case, so my Mom pinned me . . . very cool!
. . . and she just happens to be an RN.

The next day, my husband, kids, and all my family traveled to Waco to participate in Baylor University's Commencement on her main campus. It was very moving. You know, I never graduated from high school, so participating in a graduation ceremony on this campus, for this degree, was exciting and humbling all at the same time. My graduating class of 50 wore cut out, glittery foam pieces on the tops of our caps that read "RN" and could be seen from all over the auditorium. Oh, and at Baylor, when you walk across the stage and the Dean hands you the scroll, it is not just a piece of paper that tells you when to expect your diploma. They actually give you your real diploma right then and there.

After the ceremony, we traveled back to Dallas and got ready for my dinner party. We all went to a place called Morton's. It is a fine dining steak house that I waitressed at before my first child was born. The food was wonderful and we had a great time. My mom stood up and toasted my husband for all of his hard work and dedication to me and the kids over the last four years. He really has been remarkable! I loved the fact that she recognized him publicly and honored him in such a special way. He worked just as hard as I did to get me through school.

We spent Christmas with my family in Lubbock. My instructors told me to study for the NCLEX (the RN licensure exam) over the Holidays, but frankly, I studied for the NCLEX for four years and figured that taking a break from the books for a few weeks would probably be more therapeutic. When I returned to Dallas in January, I would schedule the NCLEX exam and study the week before . . . of course, you know what they say about the best laid plans.

I returned to Dallas on January 3rd, checked test dates on January 5th, and realized that I either had to drive to Waco and take the exam the following morning or wait for 3+ weeks to take it in Dallas. I'm a little bit crazy, so I drove to Waco, spent the night, stayed up most of the night studying and took my exam at 0800 on January 6th. While taking the exam, I kept thinking, "what did I do?!?!" The exam was not at all what I expected, and I really was unsure as to whether or not I passed. Forty-eight hours later, I was able to check the Board of Nurse Examiners website and saw my RN license number! I am officially Sarah Lawton, RN, BSN. Who would have ever thought I would have so many letters trailing my name!

I start my new job on January 19th. I will be working in the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit (BMTU) at Baylor University Medical Center in downtown Dallas. They have a 3-month internship for their new graduates so that we can learn how to be a nurse; in nursing school, you are taught theory, communication, disease processes, medications, etc., but you definitely need a lot of hands-on training to prepare you to care for patients in a safe and competent manner. On my unit, patients frequently have complications and many of them die. There is not much room for making mistakes and the patients and their families are counting on you to know when to intervene, how to intervene and, at times, to convince the rest of the health care team to intervene when problems are about to arise or complications have already taken place. I've been told that it takes at least a year before a new graduate begins to feel comfortable in the nursing role on my unit.

I chose this unit after working on it over the summer as a nurse tech (pretty much a nurse's aide). The unit has a six-bed, in-house critical care area for those patients who make a turn for the worse. I love that the patients do not leave the floor, so that there is a continuity in their care from the same nurses, physicians, and other providers regardless of how their treatment progresses. If they don't respond well to the transplant, and death is inevitable, we provide palliative care and help them to die comfortably. For the patients who do respond well, we are able to nurse them back to health over a period of several weeks to months and have the chance to minister to them and their families.

It will be an exciting job but I will also be able to have a lot of time with my children. Nursing is one of the few careers where you can actually get paid more for working less. I will be working two night shifts each weekend and will receive full-time pay and full-time benefits for working those two shifts. This way, I will be with the children throughout the week and will have time to still fulfill my heart's desires in the roles of mother and wife.

Thank you again for all of the financial support you gave me over the last four years. The scholarships helped pay for books, childcare, gas and so much more. I will always remember your generosity and how much the kindness of strangers has seen me through the various challenges in my life. Please let the Auxiliary know how much their assistance blessed my family!

Sincerely,

Sarah E. Lawton, RN, BSN