Danecia Hodge of Sandy Ground, Anguilla attended the University of the Virgin Islands, St. Thomas in August 2016, where she obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Nursing, and graduated with Magna Cum Laude Honors in May 2020.
Her degree choice was inspired in 2012 when she attended a 6-month Nurse Cadet Programme at the Princess Alexandra Hospital. There she gained a lot of experience in the field of nursing and became interested in that vocation. From then, her dream was to become a nurse.
She has been very active through her years at UVI. She was a member of the Golden Key Honor Society, Secretary of the National Student Nurse Association, Secretary of the UVI Student Nurse Association, and an active member of the Anguilla Association Club at UVI. She also received awards for Dean’s list ceremony every semester, and was able to obtain a 4.0 GPA in Spring 2017.
Ms. Hodge gained a lot of experience during her clinical experience, but one clinical area that stood out to her was the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
Her love for babies has grown the more as she got involved with them in the NICU. In her senior year at university, she trained in the Labor and Delivery Unit and was allowed the opportunity to assist other medical staff in giving birth to babies. Unfortunately, her clinical experience got cut short that semester due to Covid-19.
Covid-19 was not the only obstacle she faced while at the university. She was also in the midst of 2 Category 5 hurricanes that hit the Virgin Islands only two (2) weeks apart. This resulted in an abrupt suspension of classes for about a month. It was a tough semester for her as she had to carry the already grim workload of a nursing student in a shorter time frame as the professors hassled to stay on track. With her determined mindset and strong will, she was able to push ahead with great succession at the end of the semester.
She stated “Although it was very disappointing not to walk the stage in May with my family and friends around, I am still proud of my hard work and dedication it took to complete my degree. I truly have learnt how to persevere no matter the circumstance for these four (4) years at University.”
With God at her side and her parents continued support, she knows that the pathway ahead of her is very bright. In the near future, she intends to further her studies to become a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner.
– Contributed
