Daija Jones

Hi I’m Daija Jones and I will be a student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln this upcoming fall. My love for the medical field comes from Sickle Cell Disease. I am a Sickle Cell Disease patient and I spent a lot of time surrounded by nurses and my pediatrician. At the age of 9, I was hospitalized with severe signs of a Sickle Cell episode. My experience being at the hospital and going through multiple intravenous therapy and blood transfusions sparked a light of inspiration for me. Fortunately, I have not been admitted into the hospital since. In 5th grade, I researched my disease and informed all my friends and teachers a little more about myself. My freshman year of high school I joined the HOSA group at my school. My junior year of high school I applied for the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s High School Alliance where I took college courses like Infectious Diseases, Medical Imaging, Anatomy & Physiology, and Genetics. Taking the courses at UNMC HSA opened more opportunities for research and internships for myself. During my senior year I shadowed a medical-imaging specialist in the CT program at UNMC. I plan on majoring in Nursing at UNL this fall! I want to be a Nurse Practitioner in the future and raise awareness for my disease.