When I was
in 8th grade, my grandpa passed away after suffering for 4 years with
Alzheimer's disease. After spending a big bulk of my childhood visiting him in
different nursing homes and hospitals, I thought becoming a doctor might be a
possible career path for my future. I enrolled in a MedTrack program at my high
school, and took rigorous science and math courses with extra electives
included. When I took bioethics, we briefly covered healthcare and the
challenges undeserved communities face in getting basic healthcare. Once the
class was over, that did not stop my researching in this area and my passion to
know more about this and what can be changed to fix it. As a freshman in
college, one of my biology professors at Xavier University posted the
application for Crossroad’s Volunteer Internship in the Facebook page. After
looking over the mission statement of a VIP and what the job does, I thought
this would be an incredible opportunity to work in a clinic specifically
designed to help patients facing these challenges.
One of the
reasons why I was so happy to be a volunteer intern was because of the type of
community Crossroad creates within its staff, its roots in faith, and its
mission statement to show empathy, not sympathy to our patients. I believe that
a strong connection with staff leads to a better experience for the patients.
When I shadowed Dr. Haas before I started working on referrals, I saw how the
entire staff at Crossroad is a community within itself. They all work great
together, respect each other, and there is always someone there willing to help
if someone needs it. My shift started at 8AM, so I was able to be a part of the
morning huddle, and I was moved that the staff prayed together before they
started their day. Their prayers were genuine and asked God to work through
them to be able to help their patients in the best they can, whether it be
mentally, physically, or spiritually. I love that there is faith-centered
approach to their healthcare and they reach out to patients suffering beyond
physical problems, and create meetings that will assist them in other
ways.
I am
currently in my second rotation at Crossroad in OTR, and I have already learned
so much more about the communities we serve, and that their challenges do not
stop once they have insurance coverage. My first rotation I did referrals for
our adult patients and there was never a day that I was able to schedule
an appointment at the first location I called because of the limitations of
where the patient's insurance was accepted. Even with that, there is also a
limitation as to how far away the hospital is and if the patient can get there.
This internship is a necessity for this clinic because it is designed to help
our patients break these barriers that could be the reason why they never get
to receive the further healthcare they need for a healthier life. I love being
able to be an active part in this side of healthcare, and find ways to provide
transportation, directions, and insurance coverage, to name a few,
and make it easy and accessible for our patients to receive the best care
possible outside of Crossroad Health Center.
-- Nina Marich
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