Jenna Tuikka
The best thing about acute care is that you never know what the day will bring. It’s also wonderful to see that the acute care a patient receives is making a difference.
What is your current job title, job description, and workplace?
I currently work as a nurse in the emergency department in Vaasa. My job is very varied. It includes assessing patients’ care needs, administering medication, documenting patient information, interviewing patients, taking samples, and more. I care for people of all ages, from babies to the elderly.
What has your career path been like? How did you end up in each of your roles?
The practical training periods during my nursing studies allowed me to enter the worklife quite early on in my studies. After my first year of school, I worked as a nursing assistant at a nursing home in Kokkola. After my second year, I worked as a substitute in home rehabilitation, and after my third year, I worked as a substitute in both the psychiatric ward and the emergency and diagnostic ward. In all of these, with the exception of the emergency and diagnostic ward, I had previously completed a practical training in the same place.
Immediately after graduating, I stayed on to work at the Kokkola joint emergency department, where I had previously completed my practical training. I worked there for a year as a nurse, after which I applied for a position at the Vaasa emergency department and was hired. I have been working at the Vaasa emergency department since the beginning of 2024.
What is the best part of your current job?
The best thing about acute care is that you never know what the day will bring. It’s also wonderful to see that the acute care a patient receives is making a difference.
What advice would you give yourself if you were starting your studies now?
Be curious; don’t be afraid to ask questions. Even from doctors. I’ve learned a great deal myself by asking my instructors, colleagues, and doctors all sorts of questions.
What has been the most valuable take-away from your studies from a professional perspective?
Everything we learn is, of course, important. Above all, however, it’s important to remember that nursing is truly a multidisciplinary profession, and you don’t have to do this work alone.
Has anything in your career or professional life surprised you?
The sheer number of new things I encounter every day. Every patient is different, even if their condition is essentially the same. Each patient’s treatment journey is unique.
What is your best or most memorable memory from your student days?
My best memory from my studying days is definitely the new friends I made and my involvement in student union activities.
What was your biggest insight during your studies?
I finally figured out how to take two pills three times a day.
How do you remember your student days? Does anything in particular come to mind when you look back on those years?
I look back on my study years with fondness. In particular, the COVID pandemic in 2020 and the challenges of transitioning to online learning have left a lasting impression on me.