Jesus Christ is our example in all things. He trusts perfectly in Heavenly Father, is completely virtuous and humble, and possesses a perfect, pure love for all of us. Despite being sinless, the Master Healer also had to suffer and overcome barriers in His life. He was spit upon, mocked, rejected by many, and eventually lifted up on the cross for our sins. As His disciples, we seek to become all that He is. We do this by walking in his footsteps and acting as He would. Simply put, we do this by “taking up our cross” and facing the challenges in our own lives with faith and a perfect brightness of hope. BYU’s Dr. Corinna Trujillo Tanner exemplifies this Christlike determination to overcome challenges in both word and deed.
Dr. Trujillo Tanner has been an assistant professor in the BYU College of Nursing since 2019. She specializes in teaching geriatric and end-of-life care. Earlier this year, she was selected as a recipient of the Brigham Young University Early Career Teaching Award in recognition of her love and support for students, in and out of the classroom. What really sets her apart, however, has been her life-altering battle - and triumph - with legal blindness.
Since her youth, Dr. Trujillo Tanner has been living with Stargardt disease, a visual impairment that slowly
damages the retina over the course of a lifetime. This creates a blind spot in the center of her line of sight, requiring her to rely on strong magnification for visual tasks. Her struggle to see things that others could spot with a glance meant that Dr. Trujillo Tanner struggled at times in school, and things became especially difficult when she entered the College of Nursing. She elaborated on the worries she had as a student, saying that “at times, I doubted I could learn the necessary skills to be a successful nurse.” After all, whether it be examining the dial of a blood pressure cuff, or reading a prescription label, eagle eyesight comes in handy in a busy hospital. It would be a tall order, but Dr. Trujillo Tanner wasn’t going to let that stop her.
At one point in her interview, Dr. Trujillo Tanner reached into her handbag and demonstrated a small loupe magnifier. Moving it over the page of a book, each letter multiplied in size, practically jumping off of the page. Tools like this, as well as strategies she’s developed over the years of nursing school and work, have helped her be not just competent, but excellent in the nursing world.
While Dr. Trujillo Tanner’s struggle with legal blindness has been difficult, it’s also left her with some unique advantages as a nurse. Some skills have come precisely because she can’t see well. For example, she commented that she can detect the vein in a patient’s arm simply by feeling it. Other nurses rely on seeing the vein, and if it isn’t visible, they have to spend time searching for it.
More powerful than some handy tricks, however, is the connection of understanding she can build so quickly with her patients. In addition to teaching, Dr. Trujillo Tanner also works as a nurse educator at the Moran Eye Center in Salt Lake City. There, she assists visually impaired patients in learning skills that will help them live the lives they want. The empathy Dr. Trujillo Tanner has for her patients’ circumstances and the love she shows them create a concordance and sense of trust. She described this special effect she has on patients who see her using the exact same technology that they’re trying to adapt to: “When I walk into the room using some of the tools that are very new to them, it brings healing to them in a way that a sighted nurse couldn’t,” she said.
While her own determination and desire to serve have carried her far, Dr. Trujillo Tanner attributed her success and personal peace to her testimony of Jesus Christ and His Infinite Atonement. She credits the Lord for giving her the motivation and power necessary to achieve her current level of service. When pondering on how she’s been supported in her trials, she also said that God has put many great people in her life to buoy her up. Above all else, the greatest source of strength for her has been the knowledge of a Resurrection to come. She loves the biblical account of the Savior healing a blind man and knows that such a reality awaits her, as well as her precious patients. She expressed this hope enthusiastically:
“Because of Jesus Christ, I don’t have to live with this blindness forever. All I'm asked to do is live with it from Point A to Point B and then it’s not an issue anymore."
Dr. Trujillo Tanner’s testimony of Christ has allowed her to expand her service to other underserved communities. Since May 2023, she’s made regular trips to Ecuador along with groups of students from multiple departments, including nursing, engineering, business, and videography. Why a varied team such as this? To change the lives of Ecuador’s amputee population. Switching gears from educating the legally blind, she and her team create simple how-to videos and give basic training to help amputees care for their bodies and replacement limbs. Many in the area grapple with low reading literacy as well as low health literacy. As such, the videos and training offered by the team have been vital in educating the people and preventing further issues. This project has become a running success, and the students have fallen in love with helping their friends in Ecuador. It’s just another way in which BYU excels at helping its students learn the Healer’s Art. “Our nurses love to serve, and they love to be the hands of Jesus Christ,” said Dr. Trujillo Tanner happily.
When asked about how she jumped into this exotic work, she said “I didn’t choose it, but it chose me.” She shared a tender spiritual experience where, in a dream, she could see the people in Ecuador and felt very strongly that she had to help them. She paused to reflect on this, saying that she felt that she was being inspired. So, without further questioning, she got to work arranging plans. Dr. Trujillo Tanner’s faith and willingness to obey the promptings she receives is exemplary, and it allows her to be an instrument in the Lord’s hands.
Dr. Trujillo Tanner has spent her life turning her greatest weakness into her greatest strength, and she doesn’t plan to slow down anytime soon. With three return trips to Ecuador scheduled for 2025, new students to love, and new patients to minister to, she will be a blessing to the College of Nursing and the world for years to come.
To continue reading about Dr. Trujillo Tanner’s inspiring experiences, read her story on the website for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.