Why did you choose to go into the medical profession?

I'm doing research on a possible career track change from Health Information Technology (aka medical records) to becoming a licensed nurse practitioner. I'm curious to know how you decided on entering the medical profession. Did you have someone influence your decision? Did you know that you wanted to be a healthcare provider since your youth? Did your military profession decide for you?
http://explorehealthcareers.org/en/getting_started/is_a_health_career_right