Oct. 31, 2003 – Two young Virgin Islanders working at Roy L. Schneider Hospital have passed their national board exams to become registered nurses.
Ronda Rawlins and Marjorie Miriam Harry-Bedford, recent graduates of the University of the Virgin Islands nursing program on St. Thomas, passed the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX) this month. Both are now registered nurses working at Schneider Hospital.
Rawlins and Bedford said their study through the hospital's Graduate Nurse Intern Program helped them pass the intensive board exams.
"The program was a great help to me, because it helped me set a goal and meet it," said Rawlins, who works in the Intensive Care Unit.
"It really helped in studying for the exam," said Bedford, who was a pharmacy technician at Kmart on St. Thomas before joining the staff of the hospital emergency room. "Everybody at the hospital really helped us in what we needed to complete the program," she said.
Bedford's long-term goal is to become an emergency room clinical coordinator, and Rawlins wants to work in community nursing. Both say they are glad to be using their new skills to help people at home.
"I want to help make the health care system on the island be the best it can be," Bedford said.
Waiting to complete their NCLEX exams are Siobhan King, Debra Krauser, Kikou Martin, Cosette Parra and Selma Rubaine, also graduates of the UVI nursing program. Upon passing the NCLEX exams, all have agreed to work as registered nurses for at least two years at Schneider Hospital or the Myra Keating Smith Community Health Center on St. John.
The hospital began its Graduate Nurse Intern Program earlier this year as part of efforts at recruiting and retaining graduate nurses. The program assists recent graduates in studying for their NCLEX board exams through formal classroom education and clinical mentoring.
For more information about the program, see 7 UVI nursing graduates to complete internships.
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