Laura and Anna Hinshaw are both pursuing their BSN degrees at Clayton State University and hope to graduate together in December. For 21 years, the Morrow residents have shared a much stronger bond — as mother and daughter.
“We don’t see a mother/daughter team in nursing school at the same time very often,” said Karen Weaver, APRN, Ph.D., associate professor and director of the RN-BSN program at Clayton State. “I’m always encouraged when nursing students say they were inspired by a family member to enter the profession.”
Weaver’s daughter, Lisa, graduated with her BSN degree from Clayton State in 2006.
Children often follow in their parents’ footsteps. In this case, Anna’s decision to enroll in the BSN program at Clayton State brought her mother back to her alma mater to enter the RN-BSN program. Laura Hinshaw graduated with an associate degree in nursing in 1983.
Weaver has taught both of them and has instructed clinical classes with Laura Hinshaw at Southern Regional Medical Center.
“Laura is a fantastic nurse — very caring and compassionate — and I’m sure Anna will be an exceptional nurse, too,” Weaver said. “They are both pleasant, conscientious, responsible and very bright students.”
We asked mother and daughter some questions about their shared nursing school experience.
1. Why did you decide to pursue your bachelor’s degree in nursing?
Laura: “I’ve been a nurse for 28 years and am currently the charge nurse for the orthopedic/neurological and med/surg units at Southern Regional Medical Center. More and more of nursing is evidence-based and I know that BSN nurses have better outcomes with their patients. I care about my patients and I love what I do. My daughter’s decision to become a nurse led me back to Clayton State for my BSN.”
Anna: “My decision to become a nurse was a process of elimination. My mom was a nurse, but she encouraged me to find my own career path. I started college in art at Kennesaw State [University] before I realized my interest was more of a hobby.
“I like working with people and helping them, so I thought about social work or physical therapy. I found anatomy and physiology class fascinating, and realized that maybe I’d been running away from the obvious. Nursing fit the life I wanted.”
2. How do you see each other as a nurse?
Laura: “I never thought that Anna was headed toward nursing, but I’m proud of her choice. I truly believe it’s where she should be. I see compassion and a deep desire to learn and understand the concepts and knowledge needed to care for patients. She’s very dedicated as a student.”
Anna: “Growing up with my mom really helped prepare me mentally for the profession. I’d heard the stories, and [had] seen how she cared for our family and others.
“We’re very similar and I was influenced by Mom’s passion for patient care. Once she saw my interest, she began listing all of the pros to becoming a nurse.”
3. What’s life like outside of school?
Laura: “I work a 40-hour week and take 12 credit hours. My twin boys are grown. My husband and I encouraged Anna to live at home when she decided to go to Clayton State.
“I study at night and on the weekends. There’s no time to read for pleasure or watch TV. Sometimes I ask myself, ‘Why am I doing this?’ but I know the answer, and it’s worth it.”
Anna: “I don’t work full time like Mom, but I do waitress on the weekends to help pay my bills, and I’m exhausted. I don’t see how she does it.
“Sometimes it feels weird to be back living at home, but I get along fine with my parents. They were always my superiors, but they’ve said that they’re past the raising stage now, so we’re more like roommates.”
4. What’s nursing school like?
Laura: “It’s stressful being back in school. Being older, I’m driven to do well. I did poorly on my first critical-thinking test, but I made an A in the class. It’s a challenging curriculum and I’ve had to become more proficient on the computer.
“At the start of each class I ask myself, ‘What am I going to learn from this?’ When I figure that out in my mind, it’s easier. I know why I’m doing it; the challenge is to just get it done.”
Anna: “I heard from a lot of people that nursing school was hard. A lot of it is time management, because of clinical shifts, labs and community days as well as a test every week, it seems like.
“The hardest part for me is that I hate being new to things, and there is so much stuff to learn. I just want to know it all. When I’m not studying, I’m still thinking about it.”
5. Do you have classes or study together?
Laura: “We’re in different programs, but Anna took some of the same classes before me, so she helped me out with advice. We don’t really study together, but Anna is always asking me questions. When she needed to learn how to start an IV, I brought one home and told her to start one on me. You help your child in any way you can.”
Anna: “We don’t sit down and study together, but I’m always asking her nursing questions, like ‘How do you do this?’ She’s always very helpful and caring. She’s taught me that hard work pays off and that kindness goes a long way.”
6. How has nursing school affected your relationship?
Laura: “We were always close, but now we have a common bond. She can relate to things I tell her, and I can relate to things she’s experiencing. She got to see a child being born the other day. I asked her, ‘Did you cry?’ I could remember so clearly my first one.”
Anna: “We’ve always shared a lot of the same characteristics, but I think we’ve gotten even closer. Now we have the commonality of having the same interests and goals.”
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