From Custodian To Nurse Practitioner: Mass. Woman Hopes To Inspire Others

SPRINGFIELD (CBS) – Jaines Andrades documented her journey from hospital custodian to nurse practitioner in a Facebook post showing all three of her IDs.

"It's tough to be the person that cleans. If I had to go back and do it again, I would. It's so worth it," Andrades told WBZ-TV's Juli McDonald.

Andrades still remembers that call from Baystate Medical 10 years ago. She'd been working at a fast food restaurant, when the hospital gave her an interview.

"Even if it was cleaning, as long as I was near patient care I'd be able to observe things. I thought it was a good idea," she recalled.

The Chicopee woman worked hard in environmental services at the Springfield hospital, all the while working her way through nursing school. She knew she wanted to help people.

"When do you let a random stranger into your life? Into the most personal parts of your life? Rarely. As a nurse, we get that. I just really love the intimacy with people," Andrades said.

She became a Baystate nurse, and last month - a nurse practitioner in the same place she used to clean.

"Nurses and providers, we get the credit more often but people in environmental and phlebotomy and dietary all of them have such a huge role. I couldn't do my job without them," she said.

Her decade-long path has made her exactly the employee and colleague you'd want: empathetic, grateful, and patient.

"I'm so appreciative and like in awe that my story can inspire people," Andrades said. "I'm so glad. If I can inspire anyone, that in itself made the journey worth it."