Currently working on her Doctorate of Nursing practice through the U of A’s online program and working as a registered nurse in one of Baylor Scott and White’s Intensive Care Units (ICU), alumni Alexandra Irvin exemplifies the success story of a former student.

Irvin graduated in 2010 and attended the University of Arkansas for 5 years. She originally went for poultry science and pre-veterinary science, but then switched to nursing and graduated with a Bachelors of Science in Nursing and a minor in Poultry Science. Now, Irvin is completing her Doctorate of Nursing while living in Texas and working in the ICU at Baylor hospital.

“I chose this degree because I wanted to be able to help patients on a greater level and help to create more efficient and science-based nursing protocols that will improve patient care in critical situations. I eventually would like to remain in the Intensive Care Unit as a Nurse Practitioner Intensivist. Completing this program online and from a different state hasn’t been difficult yet, but when I reach the point where I will need to complete clinical hours I will have to find health care providers that are willing to educate me and that the U of A will agree to work with. I’m only going to school part time, so working and going to school hasn’t been a problem for me yet, but I imagine it will get trickier when I start clinicals as well,” said Irvin.

Growing up,  Irvin had a definite interest in the medical field. She originally hoped  to be a veterinarian, but after working for a few years in a local vet clinic, Irvin decided that occupation wouldn’t remain in her future. Her plans shifted as nursing took her interest, and now she’s currently living in Garland, where she has for the past 6 months. She definitely gets homesick sometimes, especially this year during Thanksgiving when she had to work. There are small things she misses about NWA as well; close proximity to family and friends, the stars shining more clearly at night, and the leaves changing in the fall. But working at Baylor is certainly a dream come true for Irvin

“I love working for Baylor. All of my coworkers are incredibly supportive and make it a wonderful environment to work in. I’ve already learned so much during the short time that I’ve worked there and I’m continually seeing new things each time I go into work. The last semester of nursing school, I began applying to jobs, focusing mainly on Baylor and Parkland internships in Dallas. I had interviews at both facilities, and ultimately Baylor was it. Baylor’s process of applying and interviewing is set up so you apply to the whole system and not one specific hospital, but you can request a specific hospital. The hospital I ended up interviewing for is in Garland, which is about 30 minutes outside of Dallas. I’m extremely thankful that I work at this specific Baylor,” said Irvin.

Irvins unit is a general ICU, so she sees both medically and surgically ill patients. She’s cared for a variety of patients with diagnoses ranging from open heart surgery, GI bleeds, severe pneumonia, sepsis, critically ill cancer patients, and others. A normal day for Irvin is centered around saving lives.

“During a typical shift, it is my responsibility to administer patient medications, closely monitor patient vital signs and their status to assess if there has been any change in their condition, communicate the needs of my patient with doctors and other members of the medical team, and provide support for the patient and their family in this critical point in their life. I wanted to work for Baylor because of the standard of care they have for their facility and the patients they care for. I also felt like I would see a wide variety of patients here and that it would be a great learning environment,” said Irvin.

For any student that wants to pursue a career in nursing, Irvin encourages experience in the field before officially deciding. She suggests working as a medical assistant or CNA at a healthcare facility because it will provide you with an edge when applying to nursing school. Irvin finds that the first two semesters will be so much easier due to already having a basic understanding in the field. She however didn’t think she’d be giving this advice as to current students from an alumni perspective.

“It’s a little weird when I think about being considered a successful alumni, but also really awesome. I wasn’t expecting anyone besides my family to really keep up with what I was doing after high school. I have to say that one of the things I miss most about Har-Ber is being in band and the friends I made,” said Irvin.