BURN UNIT PATIENT BECOMES NURSE Asia Hall knew she would become a nurse at the age of five. She remembers going to a doctor’s appointment with her father and was mesmerized by the profession and the equipment; his physician even gifted her his stethoscope, which she still cherishes today. “Ever since then it sparked my imagination for the endless possibilities that nursing could offer,” Asia said. She turned her dreams into reality and started nursing school in 2017. She later graduated with her LVN in 2018, continued on eighteen more months to achieve her RN and graduated with her BSN in 2020. Asia began her career as a home health pediatric nurse; however, she felt a calling to work in the hospital setting and admitted she had hit the ceiling in what she was capable of achieving. It wasn’t until 2020 when Asia was met with some unexpected health circumstances which presented her to the Burn and Reconstructive unit at Methodist Hospital. This unit is a specialized unit highly trained to provide comprehensive wound and burn treatment, repair and reconstruction surgery and critical care. Today, two years later, Asia is a nurse on the Burn and Reconstruction unit, attributing her desire to switch her profession to the outpour of love and support she received during some of her most challenging times. “I was in and out of surgeries for several months. The overwhelming support and love of my nurses was amazing and is exactly what people need, including myself. I realized and felt a calling to provide the same level of care to others,” she said. Asia left her home health job and found a new meaning of nursing at Methodist Hospital. “When I came on this unit, I thought I would be a great candidate because I’ve been on this unit in these beds. I understand best and can relate to the patients. I know what they’ve gone through and what they’re feeling because I was there not long ago.” It takes a special person to be a nurse, and Asia says she has a real calling to care for others. “I pray every morning, asking God to help me take care of patients,” she said. “I became a nurse to offer a sense of calm to patients and provide the best care possible.” Asia is humbled by her new role and says she constantly is learning and is no longer capped at her potential. Looking back, she is proud of the caregiver she has become and will remember the hardships that guided her to where she is today. “Y’all took care of me and now I’m on the unit taking care of others. It’s really nice.”
25 | Methodist Magazine
