Tammy Powell, CPNP, MSN, is a nurse practitioner in the Mount Sinai Health System school-based health centers program, which serves young people who might otherwise not get services.
In the school settings, young people can get physical and sexual health care, in addition to help with other problems and issues, including mental health care in a nonjudgmental, culturally sensitive environment.
A former student recently wrote to express how Ms. Powell changed her life.
“Hello Ms. Tammy! I’m not sure if you remember me, but I certainly remember you. I graduated in 2010 and learned so much from you during my senior year. I was so isolated and would have had no guidance if it weren’t for you. I am now a mom and a wife, and still to this day, I mention the impact that you have made in my life every chance I get. I am now a Nurse Manager, and I would like to credit my career to you, among other things in my personal life. You taught me about sexual health when nobody had ever taken the time to discuss it with me. I felt so misunderstood among my peers, but you always showed me compassion and never judged me. I felt so safe, and I take that with me in my nursing career now. I wish to make an impact in someone’s life the way you have an impact in mine!”
Tammy, who will mark 23 years at Mount Sinai this fall, is humbled to be remembered by a student from 16 years ago.
“She left me in her heart, for all of these years,” Tammy says. “Every time I read this letter, it brings tears to my eyes. I am just so happy I had an impact on her life.”