1. Describe your involvement with this organization

   I filled out an application to be a volunteer at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in October, 2015. Upon application completion and three references to describe how well I worked with kids, I found out I was selected in late November. My first training and orientation was in January and the second in February. I was assigned to the General Medicine and Infectious Diseases floor at Children’s.

2. Describe what you gained as a result of this experience.

   Volunteering at NCH has made me an all-around better person. Because of my location, I’ve been able to work with children of all ages. Some of the patients I came across were psych patients. Although I wasn’t allowed to interact with them, the psych ward was often a flurry of activity, screaming, and security guards. In turn, I spent a lot of time consoling kids near those rooms that may have been in the hospital for other things. I learned how to interact with patients; as a future healthcare employee it’s an invaluable skill to have the confidence to walk into a room of people who are probably not happy to see you and it takes tact to walk into a room in which serious matters are being discussed or events are taking place. Not only did I gain experience as a healthcare worker, I gained memories. I spend countless hours playing games with older children, coloring with toddlers, and holding babies in an attempt to comfort them. Watching such young children suffer – some in peace, some in a very heartbreaking way – truly opened my eyes to how fortunate I am to have grown up happy and healthy. Working with the kids at the hospital gained me a sense of fulfillment I can’t even put into words!

3. Describe positive changes to the community as a result of your service experience.

   Nationwide Children’s is a hospital that’s run on volunteers. As in a usual healthcare setting, the nurses are often busy. But unlike in a regular hospital, children need special care and attention. Many of the kids I volunteer with need fed, or supervised while they eat. Many times, parents need a break from the room or a crying baby. Children need interaction that working parents and busy nurses can’t provide, especially because they’re in a very confined area with little space to express creativity or let out energy. While I can’t say that the community as a whole has had a positive change due to my volunteering experiences, I can say that I’m a part of the puzzle. And regardless of how small my commitment every week is, I can say that it’s had a positive change on me and, hopefully, to the many children and their families whose lives I was able to be a part of.

4. Describe a person with whom you interacted that made a strong impression on you, positive or negative.

   There is a nurse on the floor that I work at. Every week, she’s there. She gives me information about patients that I should or shouldn’t see. She talks to everybody that comes into the hallway. Especially during my first few shifts, she guided me through the processes and procedures of the floors. And regardless of how tired she looks or how late it is (I stay until about 2030 every week), she’s still there. She doesn’t leave her job until it’s complete, until she knows her charting is done and all of her patients are taken care of. She shows a true dedication and passion for nursing and I aspire to have as much love for my job as she has of hers.

5. Complete the following sentence: “Because of this service experience, I am__________”

   Because of this service experience,  I am a better person. I am full of happiness at knowing that, even if for just a minute, I helped a child forget that they were in pain or alone or tired. Because of this service experience, I am blessed.

1. 
2. Why did you select this individual to interview?I struggled a lot with this informational interview. Because my future has the chance of going in every direction, I struggled to find somebody to interview. Do I interview an Army Reserve nurse? A nurse that I work with at Riverside? Somebody that’s been a medic? I ended up choosing a little bit of everything: I had a friend that used to go to nursing school. He then worked as a surgical tech before recently obtaining his flight paramedic license. Like me, Travis went through many different steps to accomplish his ultimate goal. Although this isn’t guaranteed I’m going into this field and although it’s a field that doesn’t require the college degree I’ve been working so hard towards, nor is it the exact thing that I want to do, I chose him to interview. His dedication and determination made him an easy choice!

1. Describe the major responsibilities associated with their current role.As of February of this year, Travis is a flight paramedic with the Army National Guard. Stateside, Travis does a lot of training. The training is done on a real helicopter, sometimes with simulated scenarios applied to a living, breathing person and sometimes to a mannequin. As a flight paramedic, his job is both very similar and very unique to mine. In true fashion, “everything I can do, he can do better”. He’s practiced longer, in worse scenarios, with worse casualties. He’s required to triage more people, give more medications, and, as he so aptly put it “be more of a badass”. Travis isn’t with the casualty when they get hurt. it’s his job to evacuate the casualty and get them to a medical treatment facility without them dying. His job is made difficult because the Blackhawk (a type of Army chopper) isn’t a solid ground. In high wind areas, he sways. In high turbulence areas, it shakes. In high altitude, the casualty’s ability to maintain homeostasis is compromised. It’s Travis’ job to take everything into account and provide the best care possible. What makes his job even more advanced than mine is that nearly every patient he comes into contact with is in a life-or-death scenario. Nobody in his chopper is there by choice except him and the pilot. They’re in there because their life depends on safe and expedient travel. While his job has many minor but important roles (like maintenance of equipment), his primary responsibility is to save that person’s life.
2. Discuss how the person prepared for this role, and if they provided you with any advice as what you might be able to do to prepare for a similar career.Travis gave me information and actually put me in contact with somebody that can provide the same career to me. For the majority of Travis’ training, we have followed the same path. We both started in the Army Reserve as combat medics. On the civilian side, we became EMT-B certified. Following that (a couple years apart, of course!) we were both in the same unit. This is where we met. Travis was recently promoted after all of his hard work and dedication to the Army. Following our promotions, this is where we differ. Travis applied to the school through a recruiter. He then had to transfer from the Army Reserve to the National Guard. The Guard sent him back to San Antonio (where we trained as medics) for an additional year of training. He learned dozens of medications as well as more advanced things like how to intubate. Once he graduated, Travis returned home and now drives to Canton five days a month to practice flying and brush up on his medical skills.
3. Summarize any insights from the interview that might be helpful in your academic or career preparation.The advice that Travis gave me is the most important part of our interview. His advice is to follow what I want to do. I may not know what I want to do right now. I may not know next month or next year or even three years from now. But the minute I choose to settle into a career that I don’t find fulfilling is the minute that I lose my spark. People might want me to go to school and get a degree. But if it isn’t what I want to do, then why chase it? He also told me about how fulfilling his career has been so far. Like me, Travis loves the pre-hospital trauma. It’s an inexplicable rush, knowing that you are what’s standing between a patient and his or her grave. He also explained to me that there’s no right or wrong way to achieve my end goal. Despite what they tell you, it doesn’t have to be “a cookie-cutter life” where you go to school, get a job, start a family, buy a house, get a dog, retire, and call it a day. Our adventures and choices of what to be when we grow up are endless, especially with the opportunities provided to us in the military. Overall, my interview was insightful. It was great to sit down with a friend and really get to know his choices and actions and why he chose them. It was comforting to know that I’m not the only person to not have it figured out, and that it’s okay to want to do something I’m passionate about, even if it’s a pay cut or a disapproving look from my parents. As long as I’m happy, that’s what matters.

[Artifacts are the items you consider to be representative of your academic interests and achievements. For each entry, include both an artifact and a detailed annotation.  An annotation is a reflective description of the artifact that attempts to communicate its significance.  For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]