Milcah Mercy: A Journey of Courage, Resilience, and Purpose
August 14, 2025
Avant Healthcare Professionals launched the Dream. Become. Inspire. Nursing Scholarship in Kenya in 2023, to support bright, passionate students in their final year of nursing school; students who could make a difference in their communities but needed a helping hand to cross the finish line of their nursing program. Beyond covering tuition and providing a monthly stipend, the scholarship offers leadership development, community service opportunities, and mentorship to help scholars thrive academically and professionally. Among those outstanding students is Milcah Mercy, one of our very first Avant Scholars, and her journey is nothing short of remarkable.
Milcah comes from a humble background, but she never let that define her limits. With unwavering determination, she pursued her dream of becoming a nurse and enrolled in the Kenya Registered Community Health Nurse (KRCHN) program at Thika School of Medical and Health Sciences. Through countless challenges, she rose as a leader, often guiding her fellow nursing students through team projects and taking charge of clinical rotation groups with the goal of strengthening her communication and leadership skills.
While still a student, Milcah joined the Kenya Red Cross Society to serve inmates in prison, a true testament to her heart for service. Most recently, she volunteered during Avant’s Global Impact Day at Mogra Children’s Rescue Centre where she helped bring health education to life for over 600 children. Her commitment to helping others deepened as she worked toward completing her nursing education.
One of Milcah’s greatest challenges was lacking the basic materials she needed for her studies. Often, she went without things like textbooks and scrubs, items considered essential school supplies for her program. But when she became an Avant Scholar, those barriers began to fall away. Her joy and gratitude were evident when she shared:
“I have sent you those [student card] documents to show you that, for the first time since joining college, I have managed to have the required documents. All was possible because of your kind gesture, as the Avant team. You don't know how you have changed my life. I will be forever grateful to the Avant team.”
Today, Milcah is a licensed Kenya Registered Community Health Nurse, a title she earned with hard work, heart, and resilience. Reflecting on this milestone, she expressed:
“I did my Nursing Council of Kenya licensing exams and managed to download my practicing license. As I sat down with my license, tears of joy ran on my face. You made it happen. You helped me realize my dreams.”
And Milcah is not stopping there. Her next goal? To serve in rural communities where care is needed most. Giving back has always been at the core of Milcah’s journey, and now she is ready to make a lasting impact.
To learn more about Global Impact or explore ways to get involved, visit here.
About Avant Healthcare Professionals
Need nurses? Avant Healthcare Professionals is the premier staffing specialist for internationally educated registered nurses, physical therapists and occupational therapists. Avant has placed thousands of international healthcare professionals across U.S. facilities to help improve the continuity of their care, fill hard-to-find specialties, and increase patient satisfaction, revenue and HCAHPS scores. Avant is a Joint Commission accredited staffing agency and founding member of the American Association of International Healthcare Recruitment (AAIHR). Avant Healthcare Professionals is a member of the Jackson Healthcare® family of companies.
