Why I want to be a nurse

Well, I just completed my first week of nursing school!!!  Yay.  My family will tell you that nursing has been something that has been in my mind for many years.  I have a master's degree in social work, worked in a psychiatric hospital for 6 years and then went on to become a pharmaceutical representative for 6 more years.  Thus, I have always been in and around the medical field; however, I have never experienced that feeling that I am doing what I'm supposed to do in this life.
After years of experience around nurses, doctors, hospitals, etc I have figured out what many folks have known for years....good medical care begins and ends with nurses.  That's of course not to say that doctors aren't miraculous, necessary people (as are other members of the medical field) but that nurses have the unique experience of "total care" for the patient.  Nurses care not only for the patient, but for their family, friends, acquaintances, and even for their community.
When I was 18 years old I was caring for my father, who was undergoing routine sinus surgery, in the hospital.  Freakishly, dad hemorrhaged terribly and suffered six surgeries in six days...ending in an emergency surgery in his room to save his life.  I was alone in the hospital with my dad; I never spoke with anyone but the nursing staff.  I was required to sign paperwork to save my dad's life that involved a procedure that most likely would kill him.  It was a nurse that walked me through the paperwork, through the medical procedure and through my fear.  Now I realize that this situation probably wouldn't happen today (as I'm much older now) but that fact remains that I was able to make an educated decision for my dad AND receive much needed emotional support because of this amazing nursing staff.  PS: by the way, dad lived!
This experience has stayed with me through many years of medical experience.  I continue to have a profound respect for the nursing community and have come to realize that I want to be a part of that community as well.  I want to care for the "whole picture" and I look forward to the next two years of my training.
EKH