Early this fall, the Florida Health Care Association (FHCA) granted Diana Aguilar, CNA at Tampa Lakes Health & Rehabilitation, with a prestigious Bruce Taylor Scholarship. Diana has been working as a Certified Nursing Assistant for three years and is commended for her hard work and dedication to her residents. Diana shared that as a child, she was always interested in medicine, yet that interest turned to innate passion when she was involved in a tragic, near-fatal car accident. Through her recovery process at the hospital, Diana was able to experience first-hand the amount of passion the nurses and assistants had for their work. She, too, wanted to share that same passion and vowed to become a nurse so that she could help others like those nurses helped her. Since becoming a CNA, Diana has made plans to advance her education and become a Licensed Practical Nurse and, eventually, a Registered Nurse. As a single mother working two jobs, Diana has faced some hardships in her life, but she continuously perseveres and never loses hope of her life-long educational dreams.
Diana explains, “I am determined to be the best nurse I can be, which means being a person of assurance for the patient.” Her main objective is to be her residents’ “champion for their health and well-being during a time when they cannot do it for themselves.” Diana believes a nurse should be thoroughly committed with empathy and compassion to ensure the resident is in good hands. Her dream goal is “to be that nurse a patient can truly rely on.”
Joseph Mingione, Administrator of Tampa Lakes Health & Rehabilitation, shared that Diana is remarkably consistent with her care of their residents, treating them the same as you would a family member. He also stated Diana is a determined, honest, and passionate employee who is an asset to the nursing profession.
The Bruce Taylor Scholarship assists the best and brightest among our members’ nursing staff to achieve a higher level of education in a field related to long term care nursing. These scholarships are awarded three times per year to applicants employed in an FHCA member facility, on track to graduate from an accredited school, become an LPN, RN, or ARNP; and be willing to pledge that, upon successful completion of all coursework and licensure as a LPN, RN, or ARNP, will work as such in a FHCA member facility for at least one year.
The next deadline to apply for the Bruce Taylor Scholarship is November 30, 2019. Click here to learn more about educational scholarship opportunities and to access the application form.