LUSON – Then and Now

Last year, we discovered that several of our students had mothers previously in the program! While we regularly have siblings together in the program or following in each other’s footsteps, we are seeing generations of nurses graduating from our now 40-year-old program. Below is an interview with Letha (mom) and Lauren (daughter) about their times at LUSON and the differences between their experiences, conducted by former faculty, Dr. Shanna Akers.

SA: We have learned that many students come to LUSON for a variety of reasons. What brought you to LU/LUSON?
Letha (Mom): Liberty was the best Christian nursing program with the most clinical hours. I wanted to go to a school that valued my faith and would also teach me how to be a great nurse. I am happy to see that thirty years later, LU has surpassed that legacy into something amazing. LUSON made the students into a team, so that we could accomplish goals for the program and do community projects.
Lauren: Growing up, I had always heard about how great of a school Liberty was from stories from my mom. It wasn’t until I came for CFAW though, my junior year, that I completely fell in love with the campus and the students. I knew that LU was where I wanted to be. Senior year of high school I got to tour the program with my mom and a friend, and we were all so impressed by the performance and opportunities that the nursing program had to offer. What stuck out to me the most, though, was how committed to Christ the students and staff were. I wanted to go somewhere that would grow me in my career and in my faith.

SA: Why did you want to become a nurse?
Letha: As a child I had a major surgery. With every visit, the nurses that took care of me made a big impression. I loved the idea of being able to help people in the way that they helped me. When I lost my grandma to cancer, I wanted to grow up to be someone who could take care for people with illness. I admired the compassion and strength of the nurses in my life and saw nursing as a noble pathway to achieve both purpose and independence.
Lauren: Growing up with my mom, I loved getting to hear the stories that she would tell every day after coming home from work. I was inspired by the strength and compassion that her and other nurses in my life got to show to different people every day. Having such an example of what it meant to be a strong, independent woman of God is what first made me want to be a nurse. In high school I started to really fall in love with nursing and I realized that that was my calling – to be able to serve the Lord by meeting the needs of those who cannot help themselves.

SA: Each of us have a different reason we joined the profession of nursing. What is your nursing passion?
Letha: I have worked in a lot of areas as a nurse, thanks in large part to the hard preparation of LU. My passion is working as a circulator in the Operating Room and specifically robotic surgery. The pace and symphony of so many cooperative efforts at work is indescribable.
Lauren: So far, in my time as a student, my favorite part of nursing is being able to get to know the patients, to be that support for them when they are in greatest need of a friend or confidant. I also love the fast pace of many areas of nursing and having to think quickly and critically on my feet. I enjoy the controlled chaos and problem solving. I don’t yet know where I will be after graduation, but I am really excited about critical care.

SA: Nursing school is a challenge; there is no doubt about that. What words of wisdom do you have for future students/current students?
Letha: 
– Never pass on an opportunity to learn new things. Always show up ready. Do your very best and let God do the rest.
– I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Phil 4:13
– For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and love and of a sound mind. II Tim 1:7
Lauren: 
– Whenever I begin to feel stressed, I remember my mom’s mantra ,“Do your best and let God do the rest.” It grounds me and reminds me of who is really in control.
– To future and current students, I would just say to take a deep breath and slow down for a moment when things start to become hectic and remember that God is in control. He will pull you through if you follow him.
– Do not try to handle everything all at once. Take it one step at a time.

SA: Lauren: What is it like to be at the school your mom attended? What are some of her school stories that resonate with your experience (clinical, class, community, etc.)? What is your favorite memory so far?
Lauren: Going to the same school that my mom attended has brought us closer together. With her living in California, knowing that I am walking around her old stomping grounds makes me feel closer to her and it has made Liberty feel even more like home.
Some stories that really resonate with me are of her time in the labs and in clinical. She also had clinical at VBH and Richmond, so to be experiencing some of the same things is exciting. I love that whenever I start telling her a story about school, like with messing around while practicing for FCO’s or with the clinical instructors, my mom has similar stories! Somehow, I’m always surprised by how similar we are. When my mom was at LU, she was on the board of the Liberty Nurses Student Association as the president, so I always enjoy talking to her about all things LUNSA and how far the program has come. I will cherish the time I’ve gotten to spend on the current LUNSA board. LUNSA is what first made me feel like a future nurse as a freshman and has really helped me to grow into the student that I am today.
My favorite memory so far has been my time with my nursing buds. This program has given us an experience that will keep us bonded for life. From technical mishaps in lab, to wild patient stories- it’s been such an experience!

SA: Letha, I am certain campus and LUSON has changed since you graduated. What is it like to return to campus with Lauren now?
Letha: It was amazing to come back to the campus to see the place that changed my life, now knowing that my daughter was going to have a better experience even than I did. That Liberty does everything they can to give you the best experience with your career.
When I was a student, Demoss (Hall) was one story. There was one nursing lab and I was a lab assistant. We had two mannequins that are still used at LU for fun. It was incredible to take the tour with my daughter going into school! It was so cool to witness all the sim labs, medical equipment, and technology. LU now has sims that can birth babies, have seizures, and show different vitals. I always enjoy hearing Lauren tell stories about her simulation days!
It’s great that those same two original dummies from when I was a student are still there in the school.
I always love the conversations Lauren and I have over the phone comparing LU then and now.
Watching my daughter go through the same program that changed my life – it spans this history that is difficult to describe. And the bond that comes between nurses, I now get to share that with her, bringing us closer than ever.
Also, seeing the progress of the Student Nursing Association has been amazing. The things that LUNSA can do now and how large its grown is really something to be proud of. Even in the last couple years from when my daughter started at LU, so much has changed!
Having my daughter walk in my shoes really has shown us how much education and medicine is constantly evolving.

SA:What are some of the biggest changes from 1991 to 2021?
Letha: The role of a nurse is continually shifting. Advances in the availability of day surgery have changed the speed and nature of nursing care dramatically. The long road to computer charting has brought much needed accessibility and accountability to patient records. Nurses now must be tech savvy and flexible, as medication scanners, diagnostic equipment, and technology evolve at a rapid rate.
As a student, there was no internet, so research was done at all of the surrounding hospitals, which had libraries in them. Sometimes we would drive all the way to Richmond just to get articles to write our patho papers! We used typewriters, not computers, and the hospitals were paper charts. So much progress has been made.
Our induction ceremony was in the prayer chapel by the mansion with Jerry Falwell Sr.
The required white dresses, matching stockings, and mannequins have made way for sporty scrubs and high tech simulation labs. Seeing my daughter thrive in a place that changed my life and started me on the path to a successful career, brings me such joy.

SA: Was there a professor you would like to acknowledge as impacting your profession?
Letha: The academic rigor of the Liberty program brought me close to so many impactful professors. I am blessed to still have contact with many of them.
Dr Linda Miller, Dr Richard Lane, Dr Dea Britt, Dr Hila Spear, and Dr Sharon Rahilly -Not only did she teach me pathophysiology, but how to play the accordion! Also, who could forget the homemade cinnamon rolls our teacher Barbara Nuckols would make us on 5am clinical days.
Dr. Lane and Dr. Linda Miller would have students over to their homes, and Dr. Dea Britt would invite the students to her farm!
My daughter actually got to meet with Dr. Rahilly this year, when she came to LU. Not only was she super influential in my life, but she has also made an impact in my daughter’s life by sharing her love for international nursing in Togo. She is still an amazing nurse and a inspiration.

SA: Can you share a story about a time of success with your classmates? Either a clinical ah-ha moment or a classroom story?
Letha: Classroom stories: An ah-ha moment was the first time I got to scrub in on a surgery. That’s when I learned the OR was for me. In class, I loved labs, doing dissections with my classmates.
With LUNSA, we did community health fairs with teaching and physical assessments. The school also had us help in the med center with vaccines.
We once did a slumber party in the nursing lab with the seniors! We had wheelchair races and games. Lauren says she wishes the senior lab sleepover would make a comeback!
Also, we went on a medical missions trip to Haiti where I saw everything we had learned put into practice in a practical and effective way as a team for the first time.
Thirty years of nursing later, I hope they can see the impact they have made through my daughter.

Special thanks to all them moms and dads and other family members who support their nursing student in so many ways from gift boxes to encouragement cards, from financial support to late night phone calls. Each of you are investing in the future of your student, but you are also investing in the lives of the patients and communities they will serve.

Letha Bishop graduated in the first BSN Class of ’91 and her daughter, Lauren, graduate of the Class of ’22, served as the LUNSA Vice President.

Let the Legacy continue!