Nursing Alum Helping in New York City

Kira Read

Kira Read was born and raised in Cortland. At the age of 38, she decided to become a nurse – enrolling in Tompkins Cortland Community College’s esteemed nursing program and graduating two years later. 

“It was the best thing I have ever done,” she says. “I know that I am doing exactly what I was meant to be doing in life.”

Kira is a nurse at Guthrie Cortland Medical Center and recently began working as a travel nurse at the Roosevelt Island Medical Center in Manhattan, a “makeshift” hospital set up to deal with the COVID-19 Pandemic. 

Can you tell us about what you’re doing in the city … where you are, what kind of working, etc.?
I took a travel nurse position working at Roosevelt Island Medical Center. I work in a "makeshift" hospital that hasn't been open for more than 10 years. I am on a medical unit, which is the type of nursing I did at home while working for Guthrie Cortland Medical Center. 

What job were you doing prior to going downstate? 
I worked for Guthrie on a medical/surgical floor. 

What’s the been the hardest part so far?
The hardest part besides missing my family has been the limited resources at the facility I am working at here in the city. 

What’s been the most rewarding and/or surprising – in a good sense?
The most rewarding has been lining the hallway on the floor and clapping and cheering as we discharge a patient to their home. 

How did TC3 prepare you for this kind of work?
TC3 has prepared me for the diverse nursing world. The school had given me a learning environment filled with variety and embraced diversity in the various roles we were able to pursue as student nurses. 

Kira Read

Nurse Kira Read at Roosevelt Island Medical Center 

Kira Read