18 Working Nurse l WorkingNurse.com
September 16–October 14, 2019
MY SPECIALTY
by Keith Carlson, RN, BSN, CPC, NC-BC
Please tell us about the
trajectory of your nursing career.
I've always known that I wanted to
become a nurse, but the initial arc of my
career was impacted by certain set-
backs. I migrated to this country from
Jamaica in the second year of my nurs-
ing studies. I had to restart my entire
education because the community col-
lege I enrolled in would not accept any of
my previous nursing school credits.
At the beginning of my nursing career,
I chose not to advance my education fur-
ther so that I could spend quality time
with my two children and focus on devel-
oping my clinical skills.
However, I've always felt very strongly
that I had to define who I am within the
context of my nursing career, so I went
back to school to earn my BSN. After fin-
ishing that degree, I took a three-year
break from my studies, working on a med-
ical/surgical telemetry unit. I was also a
preceptor for nursing students on their
eight-week senior rotation.
Around that time, my director of nurs-
ing informed me that there was an open-
ing in the ICU and urged me to take a
course in critical care. I was apprehen-
sive, but was ultimately successful and
very much enjoyed working as a critical
care nurse.
Michelle McKoy,
RN, MSN, CNE
Clinical Nurse Educator
Foothill Regional Medical
Center
Clinical Nurse Educator
Educating the staff while mentoring nursing students
