Julissa Cortez

Hi!! My name is Julissa Cortez, and I am so excited to be a part of this distance placement and so excited to be partnering with Shalom!! I have traveled internationally, but never in a medical missions setting, but I have been wanting to for a really long time, so this will be my first time! I am very excited to provide compassionate care to the community at Shalom! I believe that learning to provide care in a different cultural setting will teach me many new perspectives and valuable lessons. I look forward to learning from both the healthcare team and the community, and I am excited to build meaningful connections through this experience.

My primary interests are hanging out with family and friends!! I love that anything can turn into a “hangout”. Going to the grocery store, the post office, you name it! With good company anything can be fun!! If I'm not out with friends and family, I am serving at my church! In the summer there are so many opportunities to serve and it can get really busy but I love it!!

Last semester I had the privilege to complete my clinical hours at CHOC in the PICU and have learned that I eventually want to end up in the PICU! While majority of the cases were really heartbreaking, I found that I was really passionate about providing the best care to these families in those difficult times, and it is something I hope to continue improving throughout my nursing journey.