Lizanne R. attended West Coast University while working full-time and taking care of her children. She used her experience to teach her sons valuable life lessons.
“It’s not easy, but I think if you are determined and have passion to finish what you started, you can do it,” Lizanne said. “I want to be a role model to my kids. I want them to know their mom is not a quitter.”
After watching his mother earn her Master of Science in Nursing from West Coast University, Riann R. decided to apply
“West Coast had everything I needed.”
However, before Lizanne could support her son following in her footsteps, she wanted to make sure he was getting into it for the right reasons.
“It’s not about the money, it’s because you want to serve the patient,” she told him. “Nursing is about serving people without anything in exchange.”
Riann’s interests were put to the test when he began caring for his elderly grandmother, who had suffered several strokes and dementia.
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do at first, so I took a year off to get some medical experience volunteering at hospitals and working in home healthcare and hospice,” Riann said. “But what really changed my passion and motivation was taking care of my grandma.”
After spending nearly three years supporting his grandmother, Riann realized that nursing was his true calling.
Lizanne said she was happy to see her son enroll at West Coast and help support him along the way. Riann noted that her support started from the very beginning and that he would call his mom after every class and ask her questions.
“She would tell me about her own experiences and different techniques or tips to make it easier for me,” Riann said. “She became a big part of how I am going to be as a nurse… now that I’m in OB she is teaching me more about how to care for mothers in labor and delivery or babies in the NICU.”
Lizanne thought back to when Riann called her at six in the morning after his first time observing in the OB.
“He said, ‘I really appreciate you, mom, for bringing me into this world. I’ve seen your suffering when you were delivering me… and you had three sons,’” Lizanne said. “I was just laughing.”
Today, Lizanne is a surgical clinical reviewer nurse in her county hospital. She said she plans to continue performance improvement projects in the county to save money and increase patient satisfaction.
After starting his program in November 2020, Riann will graduate in January 2023. Both Riann and Lizanne are proud to be a part of the WCU Community.
“I am 100 percent West Coast proud,” Lizanne said. “I’ve been able to bring all the things I’ve learned from West Coast into my community to help them more.”
Riann said he believes in the WCU mission and the diverse community they promote.
“When I walk into the hospital wearing my West Coast uniform, they know that I know my stuff because it’s a school that doesn’t take nursing lightly,” Riann said. “A good nurse will come out of this program at the end of the day.”
WCU provides career guidance and assistance but cannot guarantee employment. The views and opinions expressed are those of the individuals and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or position of the school or of any instructor or student.
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