The Life of ER Midshift

This nurse graduated in the pandemic and joined the ER where she hit the ground running

Welcome to Nurse Ascent, a twice-weekly newsletter created by nurses for nurses. This week, one nurse shares how she got her license during the pandemic and navigated a big learning curve as a new nurse in the ER. We also discuss a 12-year-old who made virus eliminating filters, $215 million donated to women's health research, and a listeria outbreak in the northeast.

But first, a masterclass in setting boundaries...

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Nurse Spotlight: Jessica Cervantes MSN, RN

What I do for work

I work mid shift in the ER with variable start times of 10am, 11am, 12pm, 1pm and 3pm. I’ve been a preceptor for nursing students, new grads, nurses new to ER, and occasionally travelers. I also started working at an outpatient surgery center doing pre-op and PACU. There we do various types of surgeries for eyes, podiatry and gynecological surgeries.

How I got here

My nursing school career was not a straight path. I graduated high school and went to CSU Channel Islands with a pre-nursing major. At the time, the school made you switch your major after your first year if you didn’t get into the nursing program. So I ended up switching to health science in hopes that I could keep applying to the program and if I didn’t get in, I could do a post-Bachelor program. So I started college in 2016, graduated in 2020, and took a gap year during the pandemic while applying to nursing schools before I started in summer of 2021. I got my nursing license in 2022 and then graduated with my MSN in leadership in 2024 with hopes to one day teach at a college or lead a new grad program.

Headlines in Healthcare

12-year-old created classroom air filters

Twelve-year-old Eniola Shokunbi created virus-killing air filters for classrooms that worked so well, it convinced Connecticut to approve $11.5 million to install them statewide. According to the American Lung Association, the student shared that she noticed when her classroom "felt stuffy," her classmates would often get sick. Believing it's important for kids to learn in healthy environments, she requested blueprints from the UConn Indoor Air Quality Initiative and worked with their team, as well as her classmates, to design and test air filters that removed 99% of viruses in the air.

$215 million into women's health research

This month, Melinda Gates is contributing another $215 million into women's health research, training and awareness around medical interventions for women in midlife and menopause. Women's health is historically underfunded, understudied, and misunderstood. Over the past 2 years, she has donated $600 million to women's health issues. According to Time magazine, this funding will help train and certify more doctors and nurses to help provide more support to woman who have a hard time finding providers with sufficient knowledge in menopause care

Multi-state listeria outbreak from soft cheese

The FDA and CDC are investigating illnesses in a multi-state outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes linked to requesón or soft ricotta cheese products produced by Clover Hill Dairy in Maryland. As of June 9, nine cases have been reported in Maryland, New York, and Virginia, including one fatality in Maryland and eight hospitalizations. According to Beacon, this infection can produce gastroenteritis with fever, muscle aches, nausea, and diarrhea in previously healthy individuals. In vulnerable populations, invasive listeriosis can progress to septicemia, meningitis, encephalitis, and in pregnancy, spontaneous abortion or stillbirth.

More on Jessica

A day in my life

On my work days, I clock in just before seeing the charge nurse to find out where I will be in the ER that shift. Since I am a mid-shifter, it’s common for me to be assigned cases with a stroke, STEMI, or ROSC or some kind of critical care patient. I’ll also simultaneously absorb other patients from the break nurse so they can resume breaks or answer our base radio. Mid shift is a very tough shift as there’s no down time. You essentially hit the ground running, missing a lot of breaks and getting new patients quite frequently. I can get up to 3 new patients in 1 hour of arriving to my shift. It’s super fast paced, so the day tends to goes by quickly. There was a big learning curve working as a new grad mid shifter in the ER, but it molded me into the nurse I am today. I take pride in my work, I care about my patients and my coworkers. I try to ease the situation we are all trying to navigate as best we can.

What I do for fun & to relax

I live with my boyfriend who is a night shift ER nurse and on our off days we try to spend as much time as we can together. We live a few blocks from the downtown area where we go have a bite to eat or a coffee when we’re waking up (or trying to stay awake). We also are a few blocks from the beach and like to take beach walks to get some sun, fresh air, and exercise in. I also like to I walk over to my Pilates studio, get my workout in, then get coffee and walk back home. Otherwise, I spend time with friends and family. I just welcomed a sweet nephew into my life who I am absolutely in love with. I also love traveling and going to concerts! My life is very busy, but I’m blessed to be healthy enough to support and entertain all my activities.

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An image of author Katie Scoggins is pictured.

Meet the author:
Katie Scoggins
(RN, BSN & Health Writer)

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