Miss America runner-up Kelley Johnson is not just a pretty face. And as an RN, she’s not “just a nurse.”
In the talent segment of the 2016 Miss America pageant, Kelley
shocked her audience by speaking about her talent for caring—instead of performing a song, a tap dance, or a baton twirl.
“Every nurse has a patient that reminds them why they became a nurse in the first place,” she said in her monologue. “Mine was Joe.”
Kelley told the story of her relationship with Joe, a patient in the early stages of Alzheimer’s. While she couldn’t control doctors’ orders for Joe’s treatments or medications, she knew how to reach him with kindness and skill. In return, Joe told her, “you have changed my life because you have cared about me.”
Who reminds you of your passion for your work?
Also check out:
Psych Nurse Laurie Barkin’s Tales From the Trauma Unit
Med Student Believes Something That's Either Totally Naive or Incredibly Possible