ROANOKE, Va – Facing rejection when you’re trying to land a job is hard for anyone, but imagine if you were told “no” because you have a disability.
A Roanoke nurse says that’s what happened to her when potential employers found out she was in a wheelchair.
For two years, the job hunt for Ryann Kress was difficult.
“I was just so tired of hearing no’s,” Kress said.
Despite having 15 years in emergency medicine and the nation facing an ongoing nursing shortage, Kress was surprised she was now struggling to find a job.
“Suddenly, I’m in a wheelchair and applying to do the exact same process and I’m getting zero callbacks,” she said.
Almost losing hope, a call came from Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital offering a job in the mother/baby unit.
The 18th try was the charm.
“I didn’t believe it was real and I didn’t tell anyone until I had my schedule in my hand.”
Dana Johnson, the senior recruiter at the hospital, says she was impressed with Kress’s resume and didn’t think twice about hiring her.
“She called me and said I just wanted to let you know that I’m in a wheelchair,” Johnson said. “I said ‘Oh, wow that’s amazing. We’ll make it work.’”
After delivering babies in jails and on the side of a highway in the past, Kress said she hopes the job won’t be too far of a stretch.
At 16 years old, Kress was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a genetic disorder that Kress said makes her collagen stretchy.
It helped her flexibility as a dancer, but that life was cut short as she developed joint and mobility issues.
“It was hard,” she said. “It was very hard. It was scary. I was 19 or 20 and I thought I had my entire life planned out and suddenly I have to pick something else to do.”
But the treatments at the hospital ended up inspiring her to pursue nursing and become an advocate for people with disabilities.
With the hospital being the same place that trained her as a student and treated her for her disorder for years, Kress is grateful the hospital is helping her out once again.
“I am still capable,” she said. “I still can do things in this wheelchair. My biggest hurdle is trying to learn a completely different form of nursing with these new body mechanics. But it doesn’t mean I can’t do it.”
Serving as Ms Wheelchair Virginia, Kress said having a disability is not the problem.
It’s the moment when someone loses hope.
“Keep coming back because someone is going to say yes,” she said. “Someone is going to see you and see through your disability. And say we want you, we want you for your skills, we want you for who you are.”
On Friday, Kress will officially wear her scrubs and start her new role at the hospital.