Jacqueline Ortiz

UConn School of Nursing, Class of 2017

I was born in Bridgeport, CT and raised in Oxford, CT. I came to UConn as a Day of Pride Scholar and am working to receive my Bachelors of Nursing.

I currently work as a personal care assistant for a student in the campus area. I help him with daily activities such as feeding, bathing, and chores around the house. I am also a UConn Sexpert, which is a volunteer peer education group that focuses on sexuality education and relaxation-based programs for UConn students.

I would like to be the best nurse I can possibly be. I want my patients to trust me enough to confide in me and to ask me for help dealing with both their immediate medical problems and with long-term healthcare for themselves and their families. However, in order to gain the trust of my patients, I will need more than technical knowledge and skills; I will need knowledge of the communities they came from. UST will give me better knowledge of underserved communities than any other program can, and will teach me to provide such communities with excellent medical care. With the skills I will gain from UST, I will make sure that none of my patients are underserved and that my clinic caters to all.