Student Spotlight - David Swale

Tell me a little about yourself
I am a full time student and an EMT. I am married to a wonderful wife who has helped me through the nursing program by giving me the positive reinforcement I needed and also helping with meals and coffee!

Why did you choose EvCC? 
EvCC is close to home, so the commute is pretty hard to beat. It is also a well-known and acknowledged school in the medical community and is a lot cheaper than a university.

Why do you want to be a nurse?
I love to care for people. I had been doing that as an EMT, and I wanted to continue my education and deepen my knowledge of all things medical, while also having an extended scope of practice.

Did you learn anything new about yourself that was surprising while completing the program? 
I learned that sleep is optional, and I will never know absolutely everything in nursing, as hard as that may be to come to terms with.

Is there anything the program taught you about being a nurse that you had not thought about or considered before?
A lot! One of the main takeaways, though, is that there is a very large emphasis on therapeutic communication and also on thinking about how and why you think the way you do.

How has the program prepared you to become a nurse in areas other than academics? 
By placing me in very diverse clinical settings and situations, which help me to increase my knowledge base and also increase my experiences, before even getting my nursing license.

Tell me about your experience using the simulation lab. 
It was all very educational and you learned a lot about team dynamics in a fast paced, but safe, learning environment. It also solidifies your thinking depending on what the subject matter is.

How valuable do you feel these simulated real-life scenarios will be to you in an actual hospital setting? 
The simulations put you into situations that are hard to deal with and are safer to have in a practice setting. By having a feel for what is to be expected during the situation, you will have an advantage when it comes to real life and will be able to be in control and be better prepared than those who may not have had the experience during simulation.

What do you plan to do next? (Job, transfer, etc.)
Right now I'm in my senior practicum, and I'm actually in the emergency department at Providence. I hope to be hired on as a nurse at Providence while also continuing my education by taking advantage of the partnership EvCC has with the University of Washington - Bothell. It's great because the way they have it scheduled out, it's an eight-hour class, one day a week, and so you get to still be a nurse while going to school.

Who has helped you succeed at EvCC? 
It is hard to really limit this down to one person since the EvCC nursing program is a pretty tight knit community, and all of the instructors and staff will communicate with each other in order to convey the needs of the students within different quarters. Through the guidance of the nursing instructors, and the time they took to ensure that we learned the information that was presented to us, and through the health and sciences offices, who amazingly keep everything straightened out in order for us to have all of the necessary requirements for access to the clinical sites, I have been able to succeed more due to the community of staff at EvCC.

Describe the best experience you had at EvCC. 
My graduating class has been the absolute best throughout all of my time in nursing school. We have stuck together and have grown very close to each other. We all will go out and celebrate each other’s triumphs, and I think I have become a better caliber of nurse because of my cohort.

Would you recommend the nursing program at EvCC to others who are deciding where to get their degree?
Yes, because I feel like they turn out a higher caliber nurse. Instead of focusing a lot on the theory side of nursing, they focus more on the practical side, the clinical side.

What advice do you have for new students? 
Have fun but remember to study hard. Nursing school will fly by and, although it may seem daunting when you are first starting, it gets easier in time, and there is a school full of other people who are there to talk to and to help you through it because we have all been there and know how hard it is. Just remember, you got this!