Fulfilling the

Running Head: Fulfilling the Mission

Fulfilling the Mission

Leslie Wiley
The Robert B. Miller College

LBAR 300
Kathleen Waligora, Adjunct Professor
December 14, 2009
Fulfilling the Mission
Within the first five years of my nursing career I decided to expand upon my
Associates Degree. I furthered my education at Miller College in Battle Creek. Aside
from the academic achievement, the mission statement of the College impacted my
professional career and personal life. The mission is to graduate students who exhibit
a high level of competence in their area of study and demonstrate service to the
community. The College values student learning, critical thinking, oral and written
communication skills, and an understanding of a globally-oriented world. The decision
to further education was made by my aspiration to eventually work my way into a
management role in the operating room. However, even early in my career as a circulator
this statement proved necessary to complete the journey to excellence in that position.
Lets dissect the Miller College core values sentence. First on the list is student
learning. As processes and techniques are malleable, one must be a lifetime student to be

Fulfilling the

successful. This involves an open mind with a willingness to learn why a change was
made and how to perform it appropriately. If you call yourself a journeyman, master,
virtuoso, etc this is a critical point. Think about it for a moment, if the auto industry had a
closed mind to new ideas wed all still have to turn a crank in front of the Model T before
we could drive anywhere. Throughout my career, especially as an advance to
management was made, I had to be willing to learn new skills and practices. Aside from
the mastery of floor work, there was much to learn with regard to new paperwork,
reports, and of most importance personnel issues. The latter required trial and error with
technique, but eventually was mastered and resulted in unprecedented productivity. The
second core value spoke of critical thinking. This goes without saying in a medical
environment. Although efforts are made to control the procedure, the variables are many
with life and death. It is necessary to promptly evaluate all variables based on factors
such as education, experience, and observations for a good outcome should the
uncommon occur. My time at Miller College helped me develop this skill, which proved
useful countless times. As student learning is, critical thinking must be an active part of
the professional regimen. This was particularly true in management. The demands of the
floor and of individuals private lives sometimes required creative solutions to satisfy
demands on both sides.
This brings up the third core value, communication, both written and oral. The
skills I gained at Miller College proved invaluable regarding these. As a circulator, oral
communication was priceless. Patient status, during the shift and at shift change, had to
be communicated precisely. Omissions, whether literal or figuratively lost in translation,
were unacceptable. In the management role, these skills were incomparable. A manager
lives and dies with their subordinates through oration of anything. Skills gained at the

Fulfilling the

Miller College allowed me to concisely and precisely orate. All managers must have in
their possession the ability to write effectively. With all the reports and summaries
required, concise and effective writing is mandatory. Miller College paved the way to my
mastery of this skill.
The final core value coincides with the nature of our nation. The United States
was and still is a melting pot of ideas and customs from around the world. And with the
growing population of Spanish-speaking people, my fluency in their language was an
asset.
This statement had effects in my personal life as well, especially critical thinking.
In the democracy of the United States, I learned to question with boldness through
research, and consequently, speak without fear about my perception on current events,
political or otherwise. Of course, oral communication was indispensable regarding my
kids. There were many questions answered and dictations throughout the years that
revealed this point.
Personally and professionally, I was better off in life living according to the Miller
College mission statement. The skills mentioned in the statement were a resource that
furthered my development in both categories.