Spring — 2005

Lorraine Rodriguez

Nursing

“The instructors in the Nursing program are very tough and thorough. They have to be, because we’re dealing with people’s lives.”

When you hear those sirens blaring or you see those crimson lights flash on the ambulance, you know for certain one thing: Someone’s in real trouble. But what you can only hope for when that person in need arrives at the hospital is that there’ll be someone like Lorraine Rodriguez there waiting. “I think being involved in critical care or surgery is where I’ll end up, because those are areas of medical care where lives are on the line. I’ve always worked in the medical fields,” she continues, “because I’m just fascinated by how the body works. And being there for people when they’re really in need of help has always appealed to me.”

After working at St. John’s Hospital over the past six years, Lorraine was delighted to find herself in the SMC Nursing program. “I’ve been at the College for about a year, but it’s my first semester in Nursing,” she reports. “There’s quite a lengthy period of waiting to get accepted, but it’s all worth it, because this program presents you with whole different ways of thinking and studying. And we have great teachers,” she adds. “Right now, I have Professor Eric Williams, and he really emphasizes accuracy: patient care; identification, protocols and standards, and procedures. He’s a professional you can trust to know what he’s talking about.”

Lorraine reports that, “SMC’s Nursing program has a great reputation that I learned about from people I’ve met who work in medicine. But I also heard about this from the students that I study with in groups. And when I get my Master’s degree and go into research—a hundred years from now!”, she says with a laugh, “I’m going to be very grateful for the time I’ve spent at SMC and the Madison campus.”

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