Dr. Shepherd is a top-tier instructor at CCM. I was with her during my final semester for clinical at MMC. As someone who is a perfectionist, I often struggle and lack confidence in my abilities. Throughout the semester Dr. Shepherd has helped me through this in a tremendous way. She is a calming presence that gives all of her students excellent guidance and makes them aware of the fact that they are capable of anything through hard work. Half of the battle is believing in themself. A famous phrase of hers that we heard from day 1 is, "You know more than you think!" I'm starting to think she may have the the phrase trademarked at this point after the number of times she has said it in lecture to the class and throught my clinical experience.

There is an adage in nursing that nurses eat their young, but this could not be less true for Dr. Shepherd. She is truly a remarkable and caring human. It is apparent that she wants all, not even just her students, to do well in life. She was always able to spark up a conversation with any patient and put them more at ease during the scary time of a hospital stay. She is a bright light in the world that sometimes seems dark. Everyone matters to her, and no one was ever less than them. I will never forget our first day in the hospital; it was like I was like we were with a celebrity. Everyone was excited to see her from patients, doctors, nurses and other hospital staff. Everyone lit up at her presence. This is just one example of how her kind demeanor has shaped so many lives.

For me personally, seeing her interact with patients has shown me the nurse that I strive to be. She taught me not only vital nursing information, but also taught me without even realizing to be strong and have to be an unwavering advocate for my patients. She taught me to speak up when I have that gut feeling that something just isn't right in terms of patient care. Many times, especially as a new nurse, one can feel inadequate especially when interacting with physicians or seasoned nurses with a great deal of experience. Collaboration is important in healthcare, and varying perspectives can help to deliver the best patient care and treatment.

An example of this is an anecdote that Dr. Shepherd shared where she was early in her career and was to send a patient for a CT scan. Something in her gut told her that she needed to be with that patient despite her charge nurse saying it just wasn't possible because of her workload. She expressed to the charge that she needed to be there and, despite pushback, ended up accompanying her patient. The patient ended up coding and nearly died. Although codes do occur during routine tests, they are few and far between, so the other staff there, even though trained, were not as accustomed to the high-stress environment of a code. She saved the patient's life! She was able to keep her cool and collaborate with the other staff to save her patient's life. Had she not spoken up and followed her gut, it may have been a very different ending.

This reminds me of another common phrase of Dr. Shepherd, "Do something!" This is not a demeaning term but one that showed me that even the most seemingly small task can help for the greatest outcome. As a new nurse, it is easy to stand back and let the more experienced personnel work their magic, but when enough people are standing back, small details are missed. Always get involved, whether it is getting the glucometer during a code or even talking to the family to ease their minds to ensure them that we are going to do everything we can to try to save their loved ones. I strive to be as uplifting as her!