"The Needs of the Patient Come First"

A statue of brothers Dr. William and Dr. Charles Mayo
that sits outside of the Mayo Clinic

The Mayo Clinic has a really fascinating history that I will not explore on the off chance that everyone does not share my interest in the history of early American hospitals :)


The Mayo brothers and their father started what is now the Mayo Clinic in the late 1800's with the motto that "The needs of the patient come first." Especially during this time period, it was absolutely unheard of for educated surgeons to even consider the thoughts and feelings of a patient. This statement lives on as the Primary Value of Mayo that I believe is still readily practiced throughout all areas of the Mayo Clinic today.


More than anything, I think that my time at Mayo is making me even more excited to be an RN soon. Seeing what nursing can look like when the healthcare team is truly advocating for their patients and focusing on keeping them safe and comfortable is so rad. 

"Defend the poor and fatherless; do justice to the afflicted and needy" Psalm 82:3

Life Sans Homework... Wow.

As nursing majors, we often wonder... what would my life be like if weekends were not dedicated to homework, if the need to study did not trump the need to eat and sleep, if we didn't have homework...

Well friends... it's wonderful.

Typical Family Photo

This weekend my housemates and I (six of us total) had such a fun couple days. We went to a we-survived-week-one celebratory dinner in downtown Rochester followed by a day of farmer's market-ing, and going to a local "beach" (I'm using that term loosely). On Sunday we went to a neighboring town to attend the annual Cheese Festival (no typo... cheese festival). The cheese festival consisted of a parade during which I saw more tractors in 90 minutes than in the last 22 years on my life combined, lots of fatty food stands, and of course CHEESE. I had my first fried cheese curds, and despite the moderate degree of atherosclerosis I acquired in approximately five minutes... they were very good. I am so so thankful for each of my housemates- I'm so blessed by each of them and am stoked to share this awesome experience with such wonderful girls.

Queso Curdos

I just finished my first non-orientation shift on my floor and it was a blast- I am beyond excited for all that I am learning (even more excited than I was to try cheese curds). Second shift tomorrow! :)

In the words of my housemate... "Let's do this"

This week has been a marathon of orientation, meeting new people, and beginning work on my unit. 

I. am. tired. ... but so very happy :)

I absolutely love Mayo... It's reputation is well deserved. They have mastered efficiency in everything from the billing department to providing bedside care ((and I LOVE efficiency :) )). The Rochester Mayo Clinic consists of two hospitals (Rochester Methodist and St. Mary's) and about a thousand other buildings filled with clinics, rehab centers, and pretty much any heath care service you can imagine.


 I am spending my summer at St. Mary's Hospital on a General Surgery floor where we care for a lot of post op abdominal surgery patients.

[[Nerdy Note- One of the physicians on my floor is one of four in the 

nation able to perform a laparoscopic whipple surgery socoolsocoolsocool]]

Anyways... One of my housemates is on the same unit, so it has been really nice to be on the floor and navigate the bus system together :)

Our First Day on the Unit :)

I have two clinical coaches (preceptors/ RNs that currently work on the floor) for the summer and both of them are fantastic; I'm so so excited to learn from them this summer. They are both extremely competent nurses and really nice too :) They have plans to take me and my housemate on a few Rochester Field Trips including the Spam Museum, yes, THE Spam Museum. 

Next week we jump into more patient care alongside our clinical coach, which I am SO ready and excited for :)

I don't think we're in Southern California anymore, Toto...

Last day in SoCal...

...First day in MN

After a morning of plane changes and free airline peanuts, I have arrived in Minnesota! I'm staying with a friend from Biola and her family for a few days before moving into Crossroads College (where most of the Mayo interns will stay). Minnesota is absolutely gorgeous; I now understand what midwesterners mean when they say California doesn't have enough trees :)


Spending time with Mackenzie and her family has been such a good transition to Minnesota. She has taken me around their city and the surrounding areas and I've seen roughly 29357329 lakes and 29357328 bugs; Not so sure how I feel about the latter... :)


I move into my townhouse at Crossroads on Saturday which I will be sharing with five other interns. The townhouse is located about two miles from the hospital where I will be working all summer, and I will commute via my complimentary bus pass! Calm your envy. (I think I can count on one hand the number of times that I have successfully read a bus schedule- wish me luck :) )