R. Valencia
My name is Rodrigo Valencia. I have been taking classes at Skyline College for the last 5 years and I’m very fortunate to be accepted in the Respiratory Therapy program. I have been working in the healthcare field for 10 years as a Certified Nurse Assistant and currently working at San Francisco General Hospital, unit 4A skilled nursing facility. I would like to be a Respiratory Therapist because this is a profession in the healthcare field that is focused on one area which is the respiratory care. In addition, this profession will fit well because it involves technology and I like helping out in emergency situation to save a patient’s life. As a nurse assistant, I’ve helped in several code blue situations and felt good about being part of trying to save a person’s life. RTs play a significant role in code blue situations.
I’m 29 years old, married and I have two boys, a 9 year old and a 2 year old. I migrated here in the United States from the Philippines when I was 14 years old and went to Fernando Rivera Middle School and then West moor High School. I didn’t go to any college after high school for some unacceptable reason and I regret that. At the age of 24, I realized that there is something wrong with me; that is not having any college education. So, I enrolled at Skyline to see what I can do as a college student and I did ok on my first 2 semesters despite of being nervous and being out of school for so long. I found out that I have good academic potential and continued on to pursue a career in healthcare in a higher level. So, I applied for the RT program and I’m glad that I got accepted.