Class Year: 2023
Program Major: Bachelor of Science in Nursing
When Erin Kilgore started her undergraduate academic journey at Case Western Reserve University’s Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing in fall 2019, the Youngstown, Ohio, native could never have anticipated how dramatically the world would soon change.
“I chose this career path because I wanted to help people and make a difference in the lives of others,” said Kilgore, a fourth-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing student. “I never could have imagined what would happen in healthcare over my four years at the university, but there has been something so special about working to touch the lives of patients on some of their worst days.”
As part of the senior year requirements, Kilgore recently completed a practicum working in general internal medicine at Cleveland Clinic. The semester-long program called for her to work full-time, one-on-one with a nurse in a hospital.
“At the beginning, I worked the night shift in a designated COVID unit, so I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t a shock to the system,” she said. “But that experience helped me to adjust to what the life of a nurse is like and to gain more confidence in my skills. By the end of the program I was doing everything for all of my patients, whether that be passing medication, charting, communicating with doctors, blood draws—you name it, I did it.
“It was one of the toughest experiences of my life but I am so grateful for it, and I am so inspired by the resilience and bravery of the nurses I worked alongside,” she added. “Being a nurse is a very tough job right now. I do my best to stay positive, but our work can be heartbreaking and frustrating at times. Whenever I find myself in those places, I always hold onto the fact that I am helping people and making a difference.”
Nursing As a Holistic Approach
As a nursing student, Kilgore learned quickly that the care of a patient requires much more than simply addressing an illness and moving on. She feels care is holistic and should take into account a patient’s history, culture, and other social determinants of health among countless other factors.
“A nurse's job is to advocate and educate, and for me, it is important to do as much as I can to fully inform my practice,” she said, adding that she’s also taken social work courses at the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences to help grow her knowledge and skills in patient care and interprofessional collaboration.
Kilgore’s capstone program is with The MetroHealth System’s School Health Program, which takes primary care to schools in the Cleveland area with a mobile medical unit. She is providing preventive healthcare measures to the students alongside nurses—including wellness checkups and vaccines.
Kilgore has experienced births and surgeries, end-of-life care and front-line work in a pandemic. And with these experiences, she feels confident in her abilities no matter which direction her career takes after commencement
Outside of the nursing program, Kilgore helps new CWRU students feel more connected to campus through orientation programs, serving on the orientation executive board, guiding tours, and welcoming new students.
This work brings her back to her first connections with CWRU: After receiving her acceptance letter from the university, Kilgore attended an overnight open house where she soon felt at home among other students and faculty.
“I knew immediately that the Case Western Reserve community was special, and that has remained true throughout my time here,” she said.