UPFRONT
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We are doing this to talk about the lived experiences of nurses like us.” – Cigal Okojie, RN, Clinical Nurse
International Appeal
NURSES FROM ABROAD BRING GLOBAL UNDERSTANDING TO THEIR JOBS HERE IN THE GRANITE STATE
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ursing leaders recognize a strong connection between a culturally diverse nursing workforce and the ability to provide safe, quality, culturally-concordant patient care. During a recent seminar titled “Understanding the Lived Experience of Internationally Educated Nurses at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center,” Jennifer Orbeso, DNP, Nursing and Diversity Inclusion Special-
n BY EMILY HEIDT 10 603Diversity.com | May 2022
ist; Cigal Okojie, RN, Clinical Nurse; and Nicolette Demeritte, RN, Clinical Nurse shared their stories of self-stewardship, struggles and success, and spoke about their knowledge and expertise about inclusive and borderless caring to educate providers around the Granite State about the trajectory of international nursing at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC). “As we come out of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a new shortage of millions of nurses and we know that our health-
care landscape in this space is screaming for more people to make our hospitals and other facilities function day in and day out,” shares Jennifer Orbeso. “International nurses are hired for their expertise and professional experience, and it is clear that the system is in dire need of our community.” Dartmouth-Hitchcock’s International Nurses Committee (INC) was formed in 2018 to further ensure the hospital’s commitment to build a patient care community that recognizes the value of human diversity, and the committee
