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From Acorn to Oak By Dorothy Courage

My name is Dorothy Courage. I have had many experiences as a nurse. I have worked in many different areas, each one in some way connected to the last.

In 1991, I lived with my family in California. I became pregnant, and during the 20-week ultrasound, a mass was discovered inside the fetal chest. I was sent for diagnosis to a perinatologist. The short story is that my son Guy had a cystic adenomatoid malformation involving his left lower lobe that would probably be lethal.

I was referred to the fetal treatment center at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center. The diagnosis was confirmed, and at 26 weeks, we (my son and I) underwent surgery-an in-utero resection of the lesion. I stayed pregnant for 6 weeks following the surgery. At 33 weeks, Guy was born. He received excellent care, and that was my first exposure to a NICU.

Guy is now 14 years old and a great kid. I have spent the years since he was born varying my nursing work. In 2001, I landed in College Station, TX, where I have worked in the maternal-child unit doing progressive care up to Level II infants. When our hospital made plans to open a NICU, I was the first to request in. I had been planning to return to school to finish my formal nursing education but hadn't wanted to start until I had a clear goal in mind. About a year ago, I finally realized what direction I wanted my advanced education to take. I want to become a neonatal nurse practitioner. Our new unit allows me to grow my nursery skills and apply them to my personal goal of furthering my education. I hope it will prove to be the perfect situation.

I feel that so much in my nursing career and my life has brought me to this place. I have an amazing opportunity to gain experience in the field in which I want to pursue advanced education. Every day that I work, I learn at least one more new thing. I am surrounded by people who support one another, and every day I look forwad to contributing to serving our patients, families, and community. When a baby graduates and goes home, I love seeing the smiles and excitement on the family's faces. Even on days when we are working really hard, I feel really good about what I do and what I can become. As a parent, I know the impact that neonatal nurses have. As a neonatal nurse, I know what an opportunity I have to learn, grow, and achieve. I am an acorn, still on my way to becoming an oak.