“Being forced to resign from my 11-year gymnastics career was incredibly life changing for better and for worse. I had countless discussions with healthcare providers telling me that my physical abilities would be limited as I had a high risk for trauma. However, I refused to acknowledge the limitations that were set before me.
Exercise feeds my soul. I live for those moments of putting myself in uncomfortable spaces, and unleashing something I didn’t even know I had. It grounds me. It gives me the opportunity to reflect and to let go of the things I can’t control.
It serves a reminder to forgive myself when I experience setbacks. It allows me to be a part of something bigger. It also became the reason why I became so resolute to dedicating my life to caring for children and their families.
After college, I found myself working in the Intensive Care Nursery at UCSF doing clinical research. As I rounded with the medical teams, and collected data for various projects, I felt myself identifying a lot with this patient population.
Much like the vulnerable, critically ill babies I was surrounded by, losing gymnastics also left me feeling vulnerable and voiceless.
In the three years of working in the ICN, I not only found myself again, but I became inspired by the providers in upholding high standards of care and to never give up on finding solutions to health care challenges.
I can honestly say that the greatest satisfaction has come from providing children and families with the tools to thrive beyond ICN discharge, and while I can’t help every child who is fighting a healthcare battle, I can take the first step in identifying their needs and demands, whether they have the resources to seek out healthcare or not.”
Fion Ng
UCSF School of Nursing, Masters Entry Program in Nursing
Pediatric Nurse Practitioner
