Soccer success translates to nursing promise

Soccer success translates to nursing promise

When she joins the team at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center in Baltimore, East Carolina University graduate and nurse Rachael Wilsynski will have a lifetime of high-level experience with teamwork and overcoming adversity to help guide her as she takes on the duties of an emergency department nurse.

Wilsynski is from just outside of Baltimore, where her parents still live. She and her older sister, Ashlee, grew up playing sports - Ashlee lacrosse and Rachael soccer. They were both very good, and the sports world took notice.

Rachael was identified early as a standout on the pitch. She was recruited into soccer academies, first for the Baltimore Armour and then the National Women's Soccer League's Washington Spirit, which meant she didn't have a traditional high school athlete's experience. But she did suffer an increasingly common setback for young women soccer players - ACL tears.

Near-daily practices after high school until late into the evenings, with an hour drive one way, took a toll. Add in weekend games and the physical stresses added up.

"I've torn my ACL three times," Wilsynski said. "At 12 and 14, then I had another little meniscus surgery at 16, and I tore it again at 17."

Wilsynski was in cleats since she was 4, but it wasn't until she started actively looking for schools that allow student athletes to undertake the demands of a nursing program that she found a place that would allow her to excel at both.

"I know it's cliche, but I like making a difference every day in somebody's life," Wilsynski said. "I think having so many injuries, being around so many physical therapists, opened my eyes."

Her time in and out of physical therapy, and the nurses who helped her recover from a series of surgeries, sealed the deal on her applying to nursing school.

"After surgery, in the PACU (post anesthesia care unit), they were just the best," Wilsynski said. "I can't tell how important it is to have an emotionally invested nurse who really cares for your well-being and wants to be there."

When it came time, Wilsynski knew that ECU was the right place for her. It was close enough to home to be near family, but far enough away for the independence most college students crave.

"Everybody in athletics is so close, we're friends with all the other athletes. And in nursing school everybody was so helpful with me - even my classmates understood it was a lot to deal with and they were always there for me," Wilsynski said.

Wilsynski said she needed the support. The pace of class work and sometimes two tests a week - on top of twice-a-day practices and travel for games - piled on stress. Clinical rotations consumed whole days.

But it was the flood of information that was Wilsynski's greatest challenge.

"It was a matter of having so much content to learn," Wilsynski said. "I would spend a lot of the time - two-and-a-half, three weeks before tests already studying for the next one, a constant loop of study, test, study, test and then on to the next one."

At one point, Wilsynski stumbled. She missed passing a particularly tough class by a point and felt less sure of her path forward. Her instructor for that course, Kelli Jones, a College of Nursing clinical assistant professor, helped set her back on track.

"When I didn't pass that class, I was distraught. I felt like my world was ending and I went and saw her and she just reminded me that this is where I'm supposed to be, that everything would work out how it should," Wilsynski said. "She helped me with my confidence and helped me believe in myself again."

Jones said Wilsynski has shown an incredible strength; she's seen firsthand the determination that will get her former student through the challenges of being an emergency department nurse.

"Rachael was focused - she had her end goal of becoming a nurse and didn't let anything deter her. She stayed determined and picked herself back up and did better," Jones said. "She would study, email me and do her work on the bus when they had to travel for away games. She never complained."

Lacing up her cleats carved precious hours out of her days, but Wilsynski cherished the time away from the classroom.

"Soccer was my escape. I studied all day and then would come out here and have fun with my friends and get a workout," Wilsynski said.

After graduating in May, Wilsynski still had work to do. All registered nurses must take a national licensure exam, the NCLEX, before being able to start work. She studied for weeks with Dr. Frances Eason, a fixture in the College of Nursing, known for ushering graduating students through cram sessions for the NCLEX.

Wilsynski said the test was challenging, but what might have been the most stressful part was waiting for the results.

"Those 24, 48 hours were very nerve-racking because it feels like it's all or nothing in that moment," Wilsynski said. "I logged on that Friday and saw that I passed, with my mom."

With graduation behind her and having cleared the NCLEX hurdle, she's ready to tackle the challenge of overnight shifts at an urban emergency department.

"I'm probably going to see some crazy things, but I'm excited. I like the adrenaline rush, I like having something new every day, so that's going to be an exciting," Wilsynski said.

Emily Buccilla, an assistant coach for ECU's soccer team, has known Wilsynski for almost six years, first through the recruiting process and then as one of her coaches. Buccilla said Wilsynski's loyalty and resilience will serve her well in a fast-paced and people-centered environment.

"She has been the most energetic and supportive teammate since the day I met her. No matter how early in the morning or how long of day she's had in clinical, she always showed up with a smile on her face ready to compete," Bucilla said. "I can see Rachael's patients really loving her. She brings so much energy to a room, and it's hard not to smile around her."

Wilsynski believes caring for patients won't be all that different from taking to the field at Johnson Stadium.

"It's important to be able to work together in this environment - scoring goals and winning. A lot of skills that soccer has instilled in me, I'm going to have to bring into my career - a lot of fast thinking on my feet and being the hype woman who brings all the energy to everybody," Wilsynski said.

Soccer brought Wilsynski to ECU, but the experiences that have shaped her into a Pirate nurse - the friendships made on the pitch and during clinical rotations - have broadened her horizons.

"It was the best experience - I loved being an athlete here, I loved being a nursing student here - I wouldn't have changed anything for the world," Wilsynski said.

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