Graduate Nursing Student Inspired at Young Age From Magazine Photograph

March 29, 2022 | News, Student Success, UToday, Alumni, Nursing
By Laren Kowalczyk



Edith Wuo was 12 years old when she saw a photograph in a magazine of a Black woman wearing a nurse’s uniform. It was shown to her by the missionaries who visited her village in Liberia, West Africa.

“It captured my heart,” she said. “I didn’t even know what nursing was, but I pointed at it and said, ‘I want to be like this.’ I dreamed that one day I would become educated and be like the lady in the dress.”

Wuo

Wuo, 57, will graduate from The University of Toledo in May with a master of science degree in nursing, her third degree in the field. She chose the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner track with dreams of making a difference in the field of mental health.

While working on the med-surge floor at a hospital, Wuo noticed a difference in how healthcare personnel would act toward or respond to patients who came in inebriated.

“I think people do it without knowing, without thinking about it,” she said. “They make assumptions based on the person’s current condition. I want to look at them as humans first. I want to look beyond whatever label was put on them. Everybody has a story. I want to know why you are drinking or why you’re trying to self-medicate.”

Dr. Joanne T. Ehrmin, professor in UToledo’s College of Nursing, is inspired by Wuo’s commitment.

“I have worked with Edith Wuo for several years in three courses in her M.S.N. Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Program,” Ehrmin said. “Over the past few years, I have become so impressed with her life story and the incredible journey she has taken in pursuit of her nursing education. From her first course with me, Edith stood out to me with her excellence in the course. She consistently strived to do the best she could in her studies and was always eager to gain as much knowledge as possible.”

Wuo grew up in Liberia and is the oldest of 10 children. She spent most of her childhood caring for her siblings while her parents went to work on the farm. She also watched her grandmother, a traditional herbalist, treat villagers for their ailments.

“I was fascinated by how people were helped and got well by the compounded leaves and tree barks my grandmother picked from the bush,” Wuo said. “The commonality between what the missionaries taught us and how my grandmother healed people with herbs are the driving forces behind my interest in nursing.”

Not long after the missionaries visited her village, Wuo went to live with an American woman and her husband to help care for their child. In return, the couple sent her to school.

Wuo developed a deep love for education. She moved to the United States with the couple in 1986 and tried several times to enroll in a nursing program at a local community college in North Carolina. After the third failed placement test, Wuo pursued a degree in early childhood development, worked in daycares, and provided in-home care though her desire to become a nurse remained.

“It’s not how good you are, it’s how bad you want it,” she said. “Even though I couldn’t get into nursing the first time, I just had to work harder at it. Nursing was always on my mind.”

In the early 2000s, Wuo and her husband, George, moved to Toledo after he was accepted into UToledo’s doctor of pharmacy degree program.

Later, the couple moved to Defiance, and Wuo enrolled in the licensed practical nursing program at Northwest State Community College in Archbold. She received her certificate in 2005 and graduated with her registered nursing degree from NSCC in 2011.

While working as a registered nurse, Wuo enrolled at Defiance College and graduated in 2015 with her bachelor of science degree in nursing.

“Something was always telling me to go farther,” Wuo said. “My heart would not let me rest. Learning is beautiful. I wish to continue my education as far as my mind and strength will allow me.”

Ehrmin mentored Wuo throughout the program and is excited to see where her path will lead.

“Edith Wuo represents the high level of students educated at the University of Toledo, College of Nursing,” she said. “Edith is striking in her dedication to the discipline of nursing and her expertise in mental health nursing. As I continued to mentor Edith, she would frequently talk about our shared love of mental health nursing. I am grateful to have mentored Edith and to have been a part of her graduate studies. I will be excited to follow Edith’s professional progress when she graduates as I believe we will hear much more about her in the future.”

Wuo currently works at ProMedica Defiance Regional Hospital.

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