From the time she was 3, Jaime Benator thought she’d be a doctor. But a summer job at Northside Hospital after her first year of college set her on a different course.
“Seeing the interaction between nurses and patients gave me a passion for nursing that just keeps developing,” Benator said.
Others have noticed. Given the opportunity to nominate one student nurse for the U.S. Army Nurse Corps Spirit of Nursing Award, the faculty at Georgia Baptist College of Nursing of Mercer University chose Benator.
The award, which is co-sponsored by the U.S. Army Nurse Corps and the National Student Nurses Association, is given each year to one nursing student in the nation who best demonstrates a commitment to excellence through community, professional and academic achievements.
Benator was named the national winner at the 59th annual Convention of the National Student Nurses Association in Salt Lake City in April.
“It was not an easy decision to choose just one student, but Jaime has been a leader since she stepped into our college and her name just kept coming up,” said Linda Streit, dean and professor at the Georgia Baptist College of Nursing.
Georgia Baptist officials believe students should be professionally involved from the beginning of their nursing studies. The college pays dues for students to belong to the National Student Nurses Association. Faculty members encourage students to get involved in their local chapter, the Georgia Baptist Association of Nursing Students (GBANS).
“From Day 1, they start to receive information about the profession and learn about the integrity, ethics and professional responsibilities that go with being a nurse. We believe that is an important part of their education,” Streit said.
Students attend nursing conventions and receive their first professional journal.
“Jaime is a student who allowed herself to grow and be immersed in learning more about the profession beyond the walls of the classroom,” Streit said. “She’s been a leader and invested in attending conventions, developing resolutions and seeing things through in GBANS and other organizations.
“We gave her the opportunity and she engaged. One of her career goals is to stay involved professionally and we know she will. She’s got the ‘fire-in-the-belly’ to be a leader.”
Passion for helping
Benator credits an experience at the University of Georgia before she enrolled in nursing school with igniting her enthusiasm for community involvement.
“I was philanthropy chair for my sorority — Delta Delta Delta — and we conducted a letter-writing campaign to raise money for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital,” she said. “We raised $20,000 in our first year, and that seemed like such a huge accomplishment and showed me the power of the written word and getting involved.”
In nursing school, Benator served as first vice president for GBANS, which participates in numerous charitable activities, including a clothing and supply drive for Haitians after the 2010 earthquake. She was also the college of nursing’s student ambassador to Mercer’s Honor Council and is a class representative for the student government organization.
At a faculty member’s suggestion, Benator became a staunch supporter of the 65 Roses campaign to raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Recently, she’s been inducted into the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing and the Phi Kappa Phi honor society. She also worked as a technician in the emergency room at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston while in nursing school.
“It was definitely a challenge, and it was fun. You have to make time management your friend and learn to prioritize what needs to be done first,” Benator said.
She believes her organizational and community involvement will serve her well as a nurse.
“It allowed me to see all the different aspects of nursing and to develop the interpersonal and communication skills I would need to go forward,” Benator said. “I learned something with every project and [I] wouldn’t change any of it.”
Benator was surprised to be nominated for the Spirit of Nursing Award, and was excited to represent her school. In her acceptance speech she noted that her achievements were a collaborative effort and advised other students to get involved in professional organizations.
“The benefits that you will see for yourself are so amazing,” she said. “You’ll see the effect that you can have on your community and that you can make a difference.”
Graduating from such a close-knit family of students and faculty on May 14 was bittersweet for Benator, but she’s looking ahead to her first job in the neonatal intensive care unit at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston.
“I’m so proud to say that I’m about to become a nurse,” she said.
