I'm a nursing student at Oklahoma City Community College, and I wanted to give a shoutout to Teryn Wheeler, one of the nurses I was assigned to while on clinical at Integris SW. When I introduced myself to Teryn, I told her that I was a first-semester nursing student and needed to write a care plan based on one of our patients: with no further elaboration, she immediately lit up and exclaimed that she had a perfect patient for me to assess, and directed me to one with conditions that aligned perfectly with our scope of study and a demeanor that was receptive to being evaluated by a student.

So, within seconds of meeting her, Teryn demonstrated an academic mastery of nursing by ushering me to the exact information I needed based only on my semester of study and attunement to her patients, their needs, and their willingness to interact with a student. Throughout the night, Teryn proved to be an outstanding mentor, explaining in great detail how and why we performed our duties and coaching me through the early development of my own nursing skills.

Outside of my own interaction with Teryn, it was clear that her patients absolutely loved having her as their nurse: every time we entered a patient room, their mood elevated immediately, and she engaged in thorough care for each one as she walked me through the best practice for every technique we used.

Teryn, you are an amazing role model! If my own nursing skills grow anywhere close to your own, my patients will be in good hands. Your instruction has definitely affirmed my decision to enter into this career field!