Virginia’s Story 

For Virginia Smith, RN, BSN, CPN, nursing has been a part of her life from the moment she was born. Virginia and her brothers were born prematurely, and, as a result, have varying degrees of cerebral palsy. Her youngest brother needs total assistance and a great deal of nurse care, which inspired her to become a nurse at a very young age. Homecare staffing was a struggle for her family, so Virginia stepped up to help take care of her brother in a variety of ways.

“Nursing seemed an obvious career path for me,” Virginia said, “Kids with special healthcare needs are my niche.”

As the nursing supervisor at ChildServe in Ames, Virginia gets to help children with special healthcare needs every day. Virginia loves working with kids because of their happiness and resilience.

“Many of the kids we serve have a rough start in life, but they don’t let their barriers overcome them. They learn, adapt, and overcome,” Virginia said.

Virginia loves working with the Medical Childcare and Autism Day Program programs because of the frequent and astounding progress she gets to witness children make. She loves looking back on the progress the children she serves have made.

“Any day I can help a family with a particular issue and help connect them to resources to make their lives a little easier is a day that reminds me of why I love my job,” said Virginia.

Virginia was nominated for a 2020 DAISY award for extraordinary nurses, which recognizes the super-human work nurses do for patients and families every day.

If you’re interested in working with amazing nurses like Virginia, view our current openings.