My First Few Steps (on Canadian soil)

While walking along the busy hallways of Red Deer College as a second year nursing student chatting with Sarah Malo about 4th year preceptorships, I randomly threw out a question about the chance of being able to go internationally for the final semester. My ears were quickly tuned to further information but after an initial affirmative answer, the opportunity was lost when further discussion confirmed that only regular track students would be given this option as University of Alberta students only went in the Winter semester. I was fully planning to fast-track my degree and though somewhat disappointed, settled into planning for my final preceptorship in Alberta.

On a cold February 2019 Monday afternoon, as if an afterthought as my classmates and I were about to leave a short town hall meeting, Kala Streibel mentioned that the opportunity for fast-trackers to apply for an international preceptorship in Ghana had just opened that day! My heart did a little jig and suddenly all my plans for 2019 drastically changed. The deadline for application submissions was less than 2 weeks away! Needless to say, the next 3-4 weeks involved feverishly filling out applications and attaching transcripts, arranging a Skype interview with faculty from the U of A, and attempting to process a part of the fact that I had just submitted something that could totally change my life, would it move forward successfully.

Sure enough, on March 12 shortly after 5:00 pm, an email popped into my inbox “Congratulations! The Global Nursing Office is very excited to let you know that you have been chosen to go to Ghana for N494/495 Preceptorship Fall 2019!!! . . . . In the meantime, hug your loved ones and share the good news!!!” EEEK! I was going to Ghana! And while I had no one around at that time to hug, I sure did make some phone calls! 😊 My bedtime story that night was reading through the pre-departure manual at least two times and with mounting excitement!

Another statement from that first congratulatory email from Isabelle: “there will be more emails to come with more detailed information.” Trust me–at that time I had no idea how much information would be required! In the next 5 months, the emails and requests for required documents kept coming much like a printer shooting out copies of a massive print job (or a printer in the wrong setting–spoken from the experience of a former administrative support person). It was a document/forms/applications marathon! But the yellow fever shot was injected into my left arm, the visa came in the mail, the white dress and shoes outfit ordered, and a small corner in my room started growing a pile of “things for Ghana.”

And now, in only 12 short days, the aircraft wheels will leave Alberta ground to fly this nervous, but excited girl, with 12 other nursing students to red Ghanaian soil as we adventure and transition to practicing registered nurses!