Talon Talk Ep. 31: "Between the Lane Lines, to the Frontlines" -- Amy Taylor

This is episode 31. Today we have Amy Taylor, UNF alum and former swimming great for the Ospreys. Taylor is serving on the frontlines during COVID-19, so we want to catch up with her and see what the demands are and how she is doing.

Thank you for what you're doing for communities now, and thank you for representing UNF well!

When she was at UNF, Taylor was breaking records in the pool in a number of events.

Taylor had a memorable 2016 CCSA Championship, making the most out of her final events as an Osprey. During that event she set the 200 fly, 1,650 free and 1,000 free school record while contributing to the new 400 medley relay record.

Three times she was named CCSA Swimmer of the Week and she was a four-time member of the CCSA All-Academic Team.

"I've only been a nurse for nine months and never in my wildest dreams would I imagine in my first year as a nurse did I think I would be in the middle of a pandemic."

Those were the words from UNF alum, former Osprey swimming standout and now nurse, Amy Taylor, serving amidst the COVID-19 outbreak.

"Realizing the reality of the situation, I definitely felt the stress," Taylor said. "Going into work felt kind of the same. You know, you're still doing your job and you just have to do it to the best of your ability so it didn't really change how it was at work."

After graduating from UNF in 2016 with a degree in health science, Taylor went to Nova Southeastern for postgraduate work before becoming a full-time nurse in 2019. Needless to say, there was little time to adjust to the new work life before entering into one of the most challenging periods of nursing and healthcare in recent history.

Currently she works in a progressive care unit, handling the "in-between" patients and many pre and postoperative cardiac patients. Three times a week Taylor works a 12-hour shift at this level, and has seen the dramatic changes take place in the organization and overall appearance of the hospital to account for the situation.

"The floors treating coronavirus patients are on lockdown," Taylor said. "They have had special maintenance go in there and the units have been turned upside down. New ventilation has been inserted to make sure the air is not going into the hospital...nurses and doctors are taking it upon themselves to be even more careful."

Adapting to this new life, work reality and world has been something Taylor has adjusted for. When it came to her career as a swimmer at UNF, it was also something she switched up to account for as well.

Taylor wasn't just prolific in one stroke, but multiple, swimming in a myriad of events during her memorable four years in the pool for the Ospreys. Taylor set the 200 fly, 1,650 free and 1,000 free record while contributing to the 400 medley relay school record. Even more impressive, she did this in her final competition at UNF, completing it at the 2016 CCSA Championships. Three times she was named conference swimmer of the week and in each season she received all-academic team honors.

A Florida native, Taylor is one of two in her immediate family to compete as a swimmer at the Division I level. Her brother, Jason, swam distance for the University of Florida. Recruited as a distance swimmer, Taylor's consistency and discipline allowed her to evolve and fill the needed roles as they arrived.

"Swimming has taught me a lot of discipline over the years," Tayor said. "I think swimming each day and competition could bring something new, so you kind of have to adapt to the day-to-day practices. In nursing you have to adapt to the day-to-day tasks and what you're going to do with different patients."

For the complete interview, follow the link here >> YouTube Interview

Talon Talk Ep. 31: "Between the Lane Lines, to the Frontlines" -- Amy Taylor

Players Mentioned

Amy Taylor

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