Portland Magazine
April 15, 2020
by Kianni Demmert '20
NAVIGATING THE SWITCH to online school has been really challenging. My fellow senior nursing students and I have all been experiencing a flood of emotions. Anxiety about how we will get the clinical hours we need to graduate, confusion as we try and learn how to take all of our classes online, and sadness as we try to come to terms with the fact that we will no longer have the pinning ceremony or graduation we’ve been working towards since the first day of our freshman year.
One thing that makes me especially sad is that I didn’t realize that all of my “last” moments on The Bluff I was looking forward to already happened. My last Rock the Bluff, my last EspressoUP, my last study session in the library, and the list goes on…
Right before the University decided to switch to an online platform, I had just begun my community health clinical rotation. Since I had been providing health care to a vulnerable population, I decided to stay in Portland instead of returning home to Camano Island, WA. I made this decision out of fear of exposing my family to any sickness that I may have been exposed to during my clinical.
Now, all of my studying and school work takes places here in my bedroom. I am surrounded by walls that are plastered with pictures of my favorite memories on The Bluff over the last few years, along with my dry erase whiteboard where I had been counting down the days to my graduation ceremony that will no longer take place. Luckily, I live with five other students who I’ve grown to be very close with. Having familiar people around while navigating an unfamiliar situation has been something I am grateful for.
One challenge that I’ve been faced with is learning how to separate my personal life from my school life and implementing healthy boundaries. I’ve had to learn how to be flexible and adapt to my everchanging environment. This is a skill that I will be able to take with me as I begin my nursing career in the middle of a pandemic.
It has been really incredible to see how the UP community has come together to support each other. Many students have been offering help to the community by picking up groceries and providing childcare for health care professionals in need. A lot of my peers and professors have been sending a text or email asking how I’m doing. These simple check-ins have been a help during this transition. For many this experience has been isolating. To receive a reminder that you have a whole community there supporting you can really make a positive impact in a difficult time.
While my senior year was cut short, I’ve been taking it as an opportunity to appreciate the value of togetherness and remind myself that it is something I shouldn’t take for granted. This is a challenging time for the whole community that is filled with a lot of uncertainty, but we can only overcome this challenge if we act responsibly together even when we are physically apart.
Kianni Demmert is a senior in the School of Nursing.
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