Senior Nursing students promote health on Well-Being Day
By Leslie A. Banks
150, 66, 21. These aren’t lottery numbers, but it’s a sure thing to bet on the future of Madonna University’s Nursing students.
150 seasonal flu vaccines were administered Oct. 13 during Well-Being Day, the health awareness event put on by Edna Rankine, members of Student Life and senior Nursing students.
66 senior Nursing students participated in this fall’s Well-Being Day and will be graduating in December.
21 different medical topics were presented by the Nursing students.
Joseph Donica, husband to Nursing faculty, Chris Donica, arrived early and without hesitation to get his flu shot.
“I’ve done it forever,” said Donica. He doesn’t recall ever having a reaction to the vaccine and calmly waited his turn as Nursing student, Kelly Sapelak, administered shot after shot.
Senior Nursing students Chelsea Respondek and Jessica Przydzial presented information relating to body mass index and nutrition.
Going a step further, Respondek and Przydzial took a hands-on approach by actually measuring and weighing guests to calculate their BMI.
“I finally realized one day this is something I like to do,” said Przydzial.
Jennifer Berry displayed information on the 2009 H1N1 flu virus and its makeup. Berry has always wanted to work as a health professional of some sort.
Since 2005, Berry has felt a calling to pursue a career as a midwife and will move on to further training in the Detroit area after graduation.
Josh Hoover’s exhibit featured facts of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Hoover came to Madonna University for the Nursing program because it was close to home. “It’s been the best decision I’ve made,” said Hoover.
With a job in waiting at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital of Ann Arbor, Mich., Hoover looks forward to graduation in December.
Coleen Baidoon and Jenny Gray educated guests on heart disease and its prevention, and provided blood pressure screenings.
Gray feels fortunate to already be working at Detroit Receiving Hospital’s Neurological Trauma Intensive Care Unit where she has gained experience and loves her job. Upon graduation, Gray will continue her employment at Detroit Receiving Hospital and further develop her skills.
The nursing field is far more saturated than it was just four years ago. “I’m really lucky to already have a job lined up,” said Gray.
