Luis Bravo immigrated to the United States, speaking only Spanish.
Over the next 17 years, he learned English and became a nurse at Roslyn’s St. Francis Hospital, where his native tongue is now critical in caring for Spanish-speaking patients.
“I really wanted to be in the medical field, so I started from the bottom, and then I became a nurse, and I’m doing what I want to do, which is helping people and helping my community and Spanish-speaking people,” Bravo said. “It’s great. You feel like you’re doing what you’re meant to do.”
Bravo, 38, immigrated to the United States from Ecuador in 2007 when he was 20. In Ecuador, Bravo lived with his stay-at-home mother, his father, and eight siblings. His father worked at a cardboard company.
He said that since he turned 18, his plan was to make the move.
“It was like a plan but it was like never knowing when it was going to happen,” Bravo said. “It happened quickly. Next thing I was here.”
Bravo had family in the United States when he immigrated, settling in Queens where he still resides.
He first started working as an operations supervisor at JFK Airport, but it was not what he had his eyes set on.
He was always interested in medicine, competing on his high school chemistry team.
But upon arriving in the states, Bravo said he found the language barrier to be a challenge and focused his studies on English.
“At the beginning I was just lost,” Bravo said.
After focusing on his English, Bravo later enrolled in Plaza College’s medical assistant program and earned his associate’s degree. Bravo then enrolled again at Plaza College four years later and earned his nursing degree.
Through his clinicals, Bravo was introduced to the doctors at St. Francis Hospital. He said he liked the culture present at the hospital.
Bravo has worked in St. Francis’ stroke unit for the past six months.
While he said his transition to becoming a nurse was rough at times, it was the support of his fellow medical staff that helped him persevere through it. He said every year gets easier and easier.
Speaking only Spanish was a challenge for Bravo when he arrived in the United States, but now his native language has been an asset in providing quality care to some of his patients.
Bravo once had a patient from Columbia who did not speak any English. When he arrived on the floor, Bravo said the older gentleman was in distress because he could not communicate.
When Bravo stepped in, he said the man immediately untensed over having someone he could speak with and express his needs.
“He even asked me for my phone number because he wanted to invite me to his house,” Bravo said. “…It was a great experience.”
Bravo encouraged others like him to pursue their dreams, whether in the medical field or elsewhere.
“If you like helping people and you really think that you can make a difference in certain fields, you should go for it,” Bravo said. “You should try.”
