Kalamazoo Times

David Le will work as a graduate nurse in critical care at Bronson Methodist Hospital after graduation. KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Some students are buried in their books; Western Michigan University students lead presentations that inform industry leaders.

"I was able to go to a nursing conference and was the only student there. I was surrounded by people who wrote the textbooks we were reading in class!" says David Le, of Portage, Michigan. "The Bronson School of Nursing program has really set us up for success in our field."

That success is evident as Le prepares to graduate on Saturday, April 27, with a bachelor's degree in nursing and a job already lined up as a graduate nurse in critical care at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo. He's also leaving his soon-to-be alma mater as a Lee Honors College graduate and the nursing program's Presidential Scholar, the highest award an undergraduate can receive.

"The faculty at the College of Health and Human Services are astonishing—their caliber, expertise, everything," he says, hailing the guidance he received for preparing him to hit the ground running in the industry.

Le helped coordinate student volunteers and lead a survey of patients at Ascension Borgess Hospital. Le's success is a testament to the hard work and resilience he's displayed both in the classroom and professional settings as well as in life.

As a teenager, he began having trouble swallowing food. After much testing, doctors discovered Le suffered from a rare esophageal disorder. Achalasia isn't generally a life-altering diagnosis, but the care Le received from nurses after enduring multiple scary surgeries to correct it changed the trajectory of his life.

"That's when I knew I wanted to be a nurse," says Le. "I knew I didn't want to be someone who just came in, gave a diagnosis and left the room. Nurses helped me through it all."

Now, several years later, he's racked up several experiences that have helped him chart his own course to his career.

Le worked on projects at Ascension Borgess with classmates Maddie Bies and Jordyn Swenson. "I've done clinicals in several different (hospital) units that have helped me figure out what I liked or what I didn't," he says. "I've also gotten to see different things done in the background with other roles of nursing. For example, I went to the Van Buren/Cass County District Health Department where I learned about immunizations, school nursing and other services nursing provides for the community."

In his final semester at Western Michigan University (WMU), Le completed a nursing leadership and management project at Ascension Borgess Hospital where he and two classmates led an innovative project that could change pressure-wound monitoring's future within the facility systemwide.

Le's team received high praise from their supervisors at the hospital for their data analysis and research on whether using Shieh Score—a new pressure ulcer risk assessment scale—could improve patient care.

"The fact that we're last-year nursing students on this effort's forefront is pretty phenomenal," says Le. "I really love research; this project reflects how much care has evolved—and we're adding to it. And I really liked being able to make a difference."

A passion for helping others drives Le's career decision further. He finds purpose giving back through organizing community service projects as volunteer coordinator of first-year honor society Alpha Lambda Delta or mentoring younger nursing students.

"Throughout my years in the program I've been asked to mentor students below me," he says. "It really sparked my love for teaching and inspiring others."

Le found another opportunity for meaningful research related disparities healthcare disparities through his Lee Honors College thesis on Burmese patients' pain management experiences.

"There was much research around African American populations getting less pain management than white populations but not around Asian populations,” says Le whose parents immigrated from Vietnam before he was born.

His thesis chair Dr Maria Roche-Dean assistant professor suggested focusing on Burmese population because Battle Creek Michigan has many refugees just half-hour away campus

"She knows research like back hand helping study"

Biases language cultural differences created barriers understanding between Burmese patients doctors treating often leading negative care experiences

"We try patient-centered sometimes can't happen because barriers constraints nice patients feel more welcome"

Roche-Dean saw value work support College Health Human Services Lee Honors College earned all-expenses paid trip present South Carolina

"I think participants surprised student quickly understood effects happening communities"

Experience full-circle moment first-generation college student family healthcare

"It great opportunity appreciate hard work paid off"

For more WMU news arts events visit WMU News online

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