Reflections: Celebrating Black History Month – Laletrice Ward
As part of Jackson Health System’s observance of Black History Month, members of our team share their reflections on the important history of the black community at Jackson and in South Florida.
At an early age, my mother was diagnosed with sickle-cell anemia, an inherited genetic disease, most common among African Americans and Hispanics. Passed down from parent to child, it carries with it a poor prognosis that brings the weight of an untimely death. As a child she dreamt of becoming a nurse, but never had the chance to continue her education. She understood the value of it and the doors it could open for her children. So she pushed us – all six of her children – to never give up and to strive for something better.
Growing up, it was difficult to see my mother struggle with her disease. She would spend many nights lying in bed trying every over-the-counter pain medication and home remedy, desperate to reduce the pain. It was so bad that my siblings and I would stay up late massaging her extremities, trying anything and everything to ease her pain.
But in dealing with this challenging situation, I realized I wanted to help people with healthcare needs. I wanted to improve their conditions and make their moments as painless as my mother wanted hers to be.
When I graduated high school, I enrolled in Miami Dade College with aspirations of becoming a nurse. My mother’s illness made it impossible for her to work, so I got a full-time job to help my family. But going to school full time and working full time was not as easy as I thought it would be. I fell behind on my courses and withdrew from school after just a few semesters.
Still, I wanted to honor her, even though I knew I would have to fight even harder to achieve my goal. So I made another attempt at achieving my dreams. I gathered myself and enrolled in a licensed practical nurse (LPN) program. And after graduating, I landed my first clinical job across the street from Jackson Memorial Hospital in the former Cedars of Lebanon Hospital – currently University of Miami Hospital.
I worked there for several years, but always dreamt of being part of the elite Jackson nursing team. They were considered to be the best back then, too.
During a lunch break 24 years ago, I gathered my courage, and like an Olympic sprinter, ran across the street to the Jackson Human Resources Office on the first floor of Park Plaza West. I filled out the necessary paperwork and applied for a job as a Jackson nurse.
After months of waiting, I was offered a position working for Jackson’s Corrections Health Services in one of our county jails.
With the support from Jackson, I continued my education and finished an LPN to registered nurse (RN) program a few years later. And some years after that, I got my bachelor’s degree in nursing.
I encountered difficulties along the way to becoming a nurse. It took me some time, but I never gave up. It was the commitment, hard work, and ambition engrained in me by my mother that made me aim to be better and achieve goals that bring me enormous pride.
Running over to Jackson during my lunch break 24 years ago turned out to be one of the best decisions I have ever made. Although my mother could never be the nurse she dreamt of, every day as I tend to my patients, I know I am making her proud. Luckily she is still here with me, living out my dreams. She gave me the courage to always strive for something bigger, and to never give up. Because of her, I am fortunate to be part of the best clinical team in South Florida – the Jackson nursing staff.
Laletrice Ward RN, BSN
Telemetry Unit
Jackson North Medical Center