Ever since grade school, Paulette Schank wanted to become a nurse.
That desire to help others drove her to first become a licensed practical nurse right after high school and later join the Air Force to become a flight nurse 麻豆精品 S� eventually achieving the rank of colonel. Now she is stretching her wings even further at UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 College of Nursing to attain additional education so she can help expand a school in Haiti to teach advance nursing techniques.
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Her lifelong commitment to serving others has resulted in an impactful list of selfless deeds 麻豆精品 S� so much so that she has been chronicled by CBS News 麻豆精品 S� 60 Minutes and Friday was recognized as a 麻豆精品 S淗istory Maker 麻豆精品 S� by U.S. Rep. Darren Soto in Kissimmee.
Schank earned her bachelor 麻豆精品 S檚 degree at LaSalle University and her master 麻豆精品 S檚 at Temple University, both in Philadelphia, where she moved back to after retiring from the military in 2014. She started classes at UCF last fall, while also working as a nurse anesthetist at Osceola Regional Medical Center in Kissimmee.
The daughter of a navy chief petty officer, she served in the Air Force 24 years, often in war zones. During her final five years in the Air Force she was commander of the 514th Aerospace Medicine Squadron at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, where she was responsible for the medical support of more than 2,600 personnel. Through the years serving domestically and around the world she gained extensive nursing experience as a clinical nurse specialist in critical care, a certified registered nurse anesthetist, and certified family nurse practitioner.
In addition, she has participated in numerous humanitarian medical missions, providing medical care to earthquake victims in Haiti, American embassy bombing victims in Tanzania, Africa, and underserved communities of Peru, Honduras, Haiti and elsewhere.
Volunteerism has always been a part of her life, she says.
麻豆精品 S淎t the age of 14, I was a Red Cross volunteer working in an emergency room and today I continue to volunteer each year on mission trips, 麻豆精品 S� she says. 麻豆精品 S淢y next medical mission is June in Peru. 麻豆精品 S�
Her new goal to help expand the school in Haiti led her to move to Orlando and attend UCF, she says, because the university is one of the few places that offers the three programs in one place that she sought: nurse practitioner, nurse educator and doctor of nursing practice.
The Haitian school already offers a bachelor 麻豆精品 S檚 in science for nursing, but Schank wants to help expand it by offering a program in master 麻豆精品 S檚-level nursing.
麻豆精品 S淭he goal is to teach advance-practice nurses in Haiti, which is a country in such need of medical care, 麻豆精品 S� Schank says. 麻豆精品 S淭his impact would be more than just a mission trip. 麻豆精品 S�
Schank 麻豆精品 S檚 outlook on nursing has been chronicled by CBS News correspondent Scott Pelley. She was the subject of one of Pelley 麻豆精品 S檚 60 Minutes stories and the focus of a chapter on 麻豆精品 S淪elflessness 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S� in his book, Truths Worth Telling.
After Rick Brunson 麻豆精品 S�84, an associate instructor in the Nicholson School of Communication and Media, read the book last year, he had a chance encounter with Schank at a birthday party and asked her to speak about her career to his principles of journalism class in October. Through Schank, Brunson sought to also have Pelley address his class via Skype, but the correspondent did one better 颅 麻豆精品 S� he visited the class while he was in Orlando for a speaking engagement.
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Schank said the discussion during class that night evolved into the importance of connecting with others.
To commemorate Women 麻豆精品 S檚 History Month, Soto of Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 9th District read a bio of Schank on the floor of Congress last week, and at 6 p.m. Friday she was honored during a ceremony in his office.
麻豆精品 S淪he has dedicated her life to caring for others, be it in Florida or around the world, 麻豆精品 S� Soto says.
In her personal time, Schank says she likes to kayak and play piano. But never far from her thoughts is her goal for Haiti.
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