June 11

Our last night/day here in Cherokee. This was such an amazing journey, I couldn’t have asked for a better learning experience. This was so eye opening and fun to get to experience what we did and learn about the culture. We got to learn a lot and see a lot, but it made it even better the people who came on this trip as well. We learned a lot about ourselves and hopefully have a better understanding of the Cherokee culture. 

This whole experience like I said was amazing. The people here were so warm and welcoming, it couldn’t have gone better. The people were so open about their history, heritage, way of life, how they do things now compared to way back, how things run, their healthcare system, all sorts of things. They answered any questions we had and were so helpful with our learning experience. It was amazing the stories they shared and even better that we got to see firsthand some of their culture. Even though it was an observation learning experience, it was still neat to see how they run their healthcare system, how dedicated they are to patients, how well they work together as a disciplinary team, and how well they promote prevention or do health checks. I can’t really add anything to the health of others but I learned a lot about what they did and can use that for my future patients. It was an eye opener to how they do things and I hope our healthcare system follows suite.

I feel this culture is able to get healthier by keeping up on the prevention and promotions they have started. The more it’s implemented and something is done about it, the more patients will be on board and doing something about their health. It seems this culture really does care and are finding ways to help make a change. I like how they are making a behavioral health unit since it is common there. That way patients have access there at home rather than having to be sent to other towns and away from families. They have a great system where they are at the doctor and the office can see when there is a prevention checkup coming up. They can schedule for the pt right there and the pt is ready to go. I find that so helpful and neat so life is so busy. This also benefits the pt’s health because they are getting checkups to prevent future health issues. For instance, a pt can come in for asthma and the Dr sees that she has her yearly mammogram coming up. That’s one way for prevention of a disease and helpful for future generations. It’s very important to set health precautions in order, get the education out there, and actually help the pt get access. That way it helps them and helps the future. If you want to make a difference, you have to implement something that will help to make a change.

This whole trip was out of my comfort zone. There were little things I had done before but the trip as a whole was hard. It was a great learning experience but it is really hard to not be with family, get out of your every day schedule, not be a clean or control freak, just go with the flow kind of things. I really enjoyed the trip and I am so grateful that I got to experience what I did. It was a once in a lifetime trip and I will be forever thankful for all those involved making this happen from the instructor who made this happen to the nurse educator at the hospital to the ER nurse who took the time out of her day to speak & share with us to all the faculty we came into contact with who shared and spoke so much with us, welcomed us with open arms and didn’t shy us away. Getting to meet the CEO of Cherokee was amazing, the few nurses at Mission Children’s Hospital were amazing to us, getting a private talk with an honorable member of the tribe was amazing to the girls I went on this trip with. Words can’t even begin to describe how thankful and blessed I am for the opportunity. Cherokee people in general were amazing and I thank them a lot for allowing us to come and learn about their culture. I don’t think I was judgmental at all about this culture. I was eager to learn about the Cherokee and what all their culture entailed. What I wasn’t expecting was how much we actually got to experience. It was eye opening especially the personal stories that were shared and what Cherokee history has gone through to get where they are today. I learned a lot and can look at life a little differently than I had before.