One of my most favorite aspects of being part of the Health Science Clinical program—besides the hands-on patient care in hospitals and nursing homes—has been my amazing classmates. With only ten students per Health Science Clinical class, we have quickly formed a close-knit group.
We’ve practiced all of our Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) skills on each other, from brushing each other’s teeth to feeding each other pudding and applesauce. Some moments felt awkward at first (like washing each other’s feet!), but these shared experiences have just brought us closer together.
After meeting each other for the first time on the first day of school, we quickly created a group chat that has been so helpful through the last few months. It has been especially helpful during the stressful testing season. Whether it’s answering last-minute questions about proper patient handling or stressing about the CNA exam together, these new experiences have been so much more manageable and fun.
Our time together didn’t stop in the classroom. Over the past five weeks, we’ve all spent our clinical rotations at the same nursing home, which has deepened our connection. We’ve shared the same challenges and successes, whether it was caring for residents or handling difficult situations, and these experiences have brought us even closer together.
I’ve particularly enjoyed the diverse perspectives in our group. Health Science Clinical is open to both seniors and juniors from all Frisco ISD schools, so I’ve had the chance to hear stories and insights from different campuses across the district.
I remember when we were still at the CTE Center we would get 15-minute snack breaks where we’d sit in a circle, share food from our different cultural backgrounds, and have the best gossip sessions where we’d fill in with each other on all of our drama.
When we started our nursing home rotations, these sessions turned into us getting food which is where I got to try new food like Korean BBQ. While our outings have been fun, I’m excited for our snack breaks when we go back to the CTE Center.
Through the unique experiences we’ve shared and the lessons we’ve learned together which normally we wouldn’t encounter in other classes, these nine other girls have quickly become some of my closest friends.
