PATHWAYS
A Publication for the Alumnae, Parents and Friends of St. Catharine Academy
On the Front Lines
M
embers of the SCA community have been on the front lines throughout the coronavirus pandemic. We have been holding all of them in prayer and are grateful for all they do. Meet two of the many first responders below.
Carmelina Parlo Kipervaser ‘10 Carmelina Parlo Kipervaser ‘10, a nurse at the Montefiore Medical Center (MMC) Moses campus in the Bronx, has been working with COVID-19 patients since the beginning. “We took on most cases of COVID-19 in the Bronx,” Carmelina says. “There is no other word to describe it except for scary…. No one knew anything about how this virus was spreading so rapidly. We went to work not knowing what the day would bring, but were determined to save lives and help others.” She says she handled the fear by reminding herself every day “this is why I decided to go into this field in the first place. I always knew I wanted to help others and be a part of their journey to recovery.” Reflecting on the many patients she has seen, Carmelina told the story of a woman who had been in ICU for a month and then was transferred to Carmelina’s floor. The patient was taken off the ventilator and then was given the opportunity to try to speak. “I was in the room the first time they placed the speaking valve over her trach. She reached for her phone and everyone in the room looked around confused. A man answered the phone and the first words she spoke were ‘I love you’ to her son on the other line,” Carmelina says. “A couple of weeks later, Montefiore was one of the hospitals the governor allowed to start having visitors. I saw a mother and her son reunited after three months apart.” When asked how SCA helped her through these months, Carmelina says, “I believe that my experiences at SCA guide me in my profession daily for the values I hold dear to my heart— the mission and values of the Sisters of Mercy: spirituality, community, service, and social justice.”
Fall 2020
Samantha Juncaj ‘17 Samantha Juncaj ‘17 was working as a nurse extern at NYU Langone Health on the cardiac care unit when the pandemic began. “The pandemic was one of the scariest things I’ve experienced so far as a student nurse and probably in my life,” she says. “I remember the first day that the unit was being transformed into a ‘COVID designated ICU.’ It was frightening to think that the next time I reported to work, I would be in the very midst of the pandemic. Each morning since that day in March up until June, I experienced anxiety and fear that I would get infected and bring it home to my family. I constantly would think about all the people I witnessed struggling to breathe and fighting off the ventilators. I especially had a difficult time coping with knowing that there were students in high school on the unit struggling for a life that has not yet been lived.” Samantha says she is grateful for a nurse she met while working in the ICU. The nurse asked how Samantha was doing and Samantha gave an honest answer about waking up just the morning before and crying out of anxiety. The nurse told her that she was experiencing many of the same feelings--uncertainty, worry, fear, and anxiety. “In the patient’s room, we shared an intimate moment where a registered nurse and student nurse both expressed their deepest anxieties,” Samantha reflects. “I thanked that nurse for talking to me that day because she helped me realize that all healthcare workers were experiencing the same emotions and that anxiety is a totally normal thing to feel during this time.” When thinking back to her time at St. Catharine’s, Samantha says, “The happiest moments of my life were experienced at SCA. I remember leaving SCA feeling empowered, confident, and ready to take on the world in front of me. As I progressed through nursing school, the strength and confidence I had as a senior in high school was not present. However, this experience has made me stronger and I think back to how I felt as a senior in high school often. It makes me happy to know that I still have the same strength, confidence, diligence, and devotion that I left SCA with.” She concludes, “Today as a student nurse and in a year’s time as a registered nurse, I will always hold the values I learned at SCA of compassion, service, and gratitude. I thank SCA for helping me grow and become the woman I never imagined myself to be.”v