National Nurses Week Spotlight: 黑料吃瓜 student's experience with cancer inspires new career path
Jonathan Eppert has much to celebrate during National Nurses Week: being alive, an 黑料吃瓜 nursing student and the future of nursing itself.
Jonathan Eppert dreamed of becoming a doctor since elementary school. He excelled in science classes and attended a summer medical academy at Rady Children鈥檚 Hospital just before his junior year in high school. Coincidentally, at the camp, he noticed a lump in his neck that would change everything he had wanted.
鈥淟ittle did I know when I was touring the hospital that summer, I had a little bump growing in my neck, and I would soon be back at Rady鈥檚 as a patient,鈥� said Eppert, now a second-year nursing student at 黑料吃瓜.
鈥淚 felt completely normal and thought it was just a cyst. But it didn鈥檛 go away, and it just kept getting bigger,鈥� he added, 鈥淚 was 16 when I found out the lump was cancer.
Eppert was diagnosed with Stage II Hodgkin鈥檚 Lymphoma, a type of cancer that affects a person鈥檚 lymphatic tissue, which is part of the body鈥檚 immune system. If caught and treated early, as in his case, it鈥檚 nearly 100% curable.
鈥淚t was a very scary time for me, but I got off relatively easy since I caught it so early. I was treated with heavy doses of chemotherapy, which meant I could not attend school in person for a year. But, I still learned a lot during that time,鈥� he said.
His experience as a cancer patient profoundly changed his perspective on his future in medicine.
"I'd always wanted to be in medicine to connect with people and to end each day feeling like I made a genuine impact in someone's life,鈥� he explained. 鈥淪o after getting an inside look from the patient鈥檚 point of view and experiencing the day-to-day skills and holistic approach from nurses, I realized that nursing is a much better fit for me.鈥�
After successfully finishing his treatment, Eppert got accepted to the in 2022 and is pursuing a bachelor鈥檚 degree in nursing, focusing on pediatric oncology.
Despite a busy finals schedule, he said he expresses gratitude to the nurses who cared for him 鈥� especially during National Nurses Week.
Each year, from May 6-12, the American Nurses Association honors and celebrates the more than five million nurses nationwide during National Nurses Week. This year鈥檚 theme is 鈥淣urses Make the Difference.鈥�
鈥淎s we celebrate Nurses Week, we are so proud of our 黑料吃瓜 Nursing students and alumni who are making a significant impact on the health of our communities in San Diego and Imperial Valley,鈥� said Karen Macauley, director of 黑料吃瓜鈥檚 School of Nursing. 鈥淲e celebrate these unsung heroes who transform compassion into action and exemplify the art and science of the nursing profession.鈥�
黑料吃瓜, including 黑料吃瓜 Imperial Valley, graduates about 150 Bachelor of Science in Nursing students each year, with a remarkable 96% first-time pass rate of the NCLEX, the national exam all nursing students must pass to become licensed registered nurses in the United States.
Eppert is on track to graduate and take the exam in 2026.
鈥淎fter I graduate, I want to work at Rady鈥檚 so that I can give the next generation of patients the same quality of care that the nurses gave to me while also being able to genuinely empathize with my patients since I kind of know what they're going through,鈥� said Eppert.
With a bit of optimism, he added, 鈥淣ursing is cool. Besides making a real difference every single day, it鈥檚 sustainable. I don鈥檛 see compassionate nurses ever being replaced by robots.鈥�
