Jenna G.
AWESOME OCCUPATION
Public Health Nurse
FAVORITE SCRUBS
Catarina™/Zamora™
FAVORITE COLOR
Cement
Q: Why did you fall in love with medicine?
A: I love being able to connect with women. I really love being able to help women build their self-confidence within themselves.
Q: Can you tell us about yourself?
A: My name is Jenna and I am an aesthetic nurse. I'm from San Diego, California. Previously, I served for about three or four years as a US Navy nurse where I worked in labor and was deployed in response to Hurricane Maria. Now I'm back home in San Diego and living my dream as an aesthetic nurse.
Q: Can you tell us about your deployment?
A: It was really eye-opening. I actually had just become a nurse and was commissioned that year. Within a couple of months of getting stationed at my first duty station, I was called up by the military and was given four hours to pack everything and leave for the medical mission. I got ready to join the USS Comfort, the ship we take for medical missions, and went to Puerto Rico and provided support and aid for people who needed medical care. We were there for three months, and it was very eye-opening to see people who were in rural areas who didn't have access to care, water, electricity — people who really needed medical attention. We brought them onto the ship and had the full capacity of an actual hospital. That was my first experience as a nurse. I got to work with two amazing corpsmen who taught me a lot. I also got to connect with the people in Puerto Rico, and some of them are still my friends to this day.
Q: Can you describe your relationship with medicine in one word?
A: Dynamic. It’s ever-changing. I've done a little bit here and there in the Navy, labor and delivery. Now I'm in aesthetics and public health. So, one thing I love about nursing and medicine is that even if you feel like there isn’t a place for you anymore, there are always more avenues out there for you.
Q: Why did you fall in love with medicine?
A: I love being able to connect with women. I really love being able to help women build their self-confidence within themselves.
Q: Nursing is a female-dominated field, but there's plenty of challenges that women face every day. What do you think is the biggest challenge you’ve faced as a woman in healthcare?
A: I think the biggest challenge facing women in healthcare is definitely the stigma and stereotypes surrounding women holding a strong leadership position. Whether it's our own preconceived notions about ourselves or others, it can really undermine our confidence. So that's what I strive for every day — to do my best, not only to show others that women are here and we can do all the things, but also give that confidence to our patients that we are strong and we’re powerful, and we’re meant to be here.
Q: Who are some of the women in your life that have empowered you?
A: My sister. She’s my twin, and we’ve always had the same interests, but she’s always helped me build confidence in myself. She’s always instilled in me that it’s okay to take up space — that I’m meant to be here or there, and I can do anything that I want to. Now I like to carry that forward and hopefully show other women that they can do everything they set their minds to.
Q: How do you balance your nursing career with life?
A: When you've just become a nurse, it becomes your whole world. It was really hard to break free from that, but now that I've been a nurse for a little bit, I've started to see that you can, and should, have a life outside of the hospital. Being a nurse is not my entire identity. It's aligned with my mission of wanting to serve people. For me, it’s important not to necessarily attach yourself to a profession but, rather, to your mission.
Read full interview
