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As a teenager, I lived in Sept-Iles, Quebec with a modest family where post-secondary education was unknown.
In 1976, I made the bold decision to attend our local CEGEP for nursing, as university was never a topic in my family. It was unknowingly the best decision, which blessed me with the absolute best career.
I started in OBGYN, which I Ioved. I helped with delivering my older sister's baby in the ambulance at age 21.
In 1981, I moved to Quebec City, but became unemployed within three months, as there was a surplus of nurses on the market at that time.
"Nursing is a career choice with so many different facets and opportunities that I was so very lucky to find and make a career in."
Looking for work, I joined the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). Basic training was followed by a posting in Ottawa where my English language improved. I did a six-month operating room course, which became my passion. I got engaged to a fellow medical officer and I followed him to Toronto, where I became a recruiter for the CAF. I absolutely loved doing promotional talks in both official languages for three years in schools, on the radio and TV, and such.
I lived briefly in Oregon where I wrote my nursing board exams in my second language and passed!
The rest of my career was spent in Ottawa, working in an operating room, as well as managing a busy surgical practice, and I became a vaccinator during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nursing is a career choice with so many different facets and opportunities that I was so very lucky to find and make a career in.
Submitted June 2024
