As of January 13th, I will be serving as a Community Relations intern for Piedmont Athens Regional. This page will serve as documentation of my daily and weekly discussions and summaries of my tasks and competencies. I look forward to noting and discussing what I’m able to do this semester!

Daily Tasks: 1/13-1/16

On 1/13, I had my first full day of interning. I arrived and met with the members that were in the office at this time. I was given a tour of the office by TG (using initials for privacy) and immediately met the faces behind the health screenings/wellness fairs (HB) and the wellness classes (KC). After my introductions, I sat with HB behind their desk. Initially, they gave me an overview of their health screenings, wellness fairs, and educational history in this position. This included different types of screenings provided thus far, including weight, BMI, cholesterol (total and HDL), and glucose. In addition, complete metabolic profiles have been screened. HB and I discussed how these different and combined screening measures have led to insight for the wellness fairs and educational materials provided. I learned that more often than not, industrial workplaces are the most receptive and requesting these low-cost screenings and fair opportunities. After reviewing these materials, HB and I discussed how these screenings are actually used to create and implement workplace initiatives. For example, recent initiatives to increase step count, with a company provided monetary incentive, showed little positive outcome. Additionally, sedentary fairs within workplaces with no incentive showed little engagement. I was asked to think about what initiatives might work in varying settings to improve productivity and health outcomes. I discussed a first-step idea of tailoring health needs to a company based on their main two health issues based on that company’s biometrics and screening results. Following this discussion and time to think, I assisted HB in reviewing and inputting biometric data to review at a later date, to then design recommendations and educational materials. As I was sitting in HB’s office, I was able to meet the people behind the maternity programs (SR), the Safe Kids Athens program (AD), and community engagement (TM). I spoke with SR about opportunities to attend and aid in maternity classes later in the week and for the rest of the semester. After I was shown to other areas of the hospital that held items I may need when helping each person, I discussed with TG some ideas and plans with each lead for the remainder of the week. By then, it was time for me to leave for the day.

1/14: Today I entered the office and immediately began reviewing and checking employee biometric data with HB, ensuring that the data was accurate to send to the company’s insurance. Together, we ensured that the data was entered correctly, and discussed the educational implications based on the employees’ weight, waist measurement, BMI, glucose, cholesterol, and blood pressure. We decided the largest health issues among these were cholesterol levels and waist measurement proportion. This will dictate the focus of future health fairs’ for this specific company. After this, I assisted TG with counting and organizing handouts for a health fair event this weekend in Greensboro. I counted stuffed animals to ensure there were enough to supply any children, and packaged notebooks, pens, chapstick, tissues, and hand sanitizer. The purpose of these items is to attract people to the Piedmont tent, to then receive general health education and learn about services Piedmont offers. After I ate lunch, I joined a Zoom call with TG, HB, and Piedmont’s partner at The Blood Connection. On this call, we scheduled the blood drive dates hosted at Piedmont. Also, we asked questions regarding what The Blood Connection has noticed to be effective marketing. Based on their response, we decided to place flyers about the drive on each hospital wings bulletin board (located in their common spaces), as well as putting them in protective coverings in the hospital’s cafeteria. We also found out that after the first drive, we can be notified of how much blood was donated by Piedmont staff, and will use this to highlight impact and encourage future donations. After this meeting was complete, I joined TG for a meeting at the Athens-Clarke County Library. Here, we met with three community partners that work through the library. I learned that, prior to my internship, this group launched “Baby’s First Book.” This is an initiative among Piedmont and the ACC Library, providing new mothers in the mother-baby unit at Piedmont with tote bags that include a library card, a children’s book, information on support groups, and a stuffed animal. This aims to improve children’s literacy, beginning at a young age. In this meeting, we discussed the frequency of this initiative for the year, how surveys should be offered for parental feedback (impact measures), and ways to improve efficiency this year. TG decided that this would be a great project for me to work on this semester. As a group, we agreed that instead of placing a QR code for feedback on the stuffed animal, it should be placed on something that won’t be unknowingly discarded. Following this meeting, it was time for me to go home.

1/15: I started off my morning by assisting SR, the leader of Piedmont’s maternity programs. Weekly on Thursday mornings, there is a breastfeeding support group hosted on the Oconee Health Campus. I drove to the site and began to set up and learn the procedures as SR held personal sessions. My procedures included greeting the mothers as they entered, verifying their registration, registering them if not pre-registered, providing them with a card for weigh-ins, and preparing the scale for each baby’s initial weigh-in. As the mothers got settled, they would bring their baby (prior to feeding) for their weigh-in. I would weigh them and note the weight. Then as each mother breastfed on each side, they would come up for two more weigh-ins. I could then calculate the amount the baby was fed from each side, and how much total they consumed. Once all of the mothers left, I helped clean up the area and disinfect community items. After this, it was time for lunch, so I drove back to Piedmont Athens’ main hospital and checked in with KC and TM. They didn’t have any immediate tasks, so we all discussed schooling and their respective upcoming events that they think would give me a good experience. By the end of this collaboration, it was time for me to leave as I had an errand to run for KC at Advantage Behavioral Health before being done for the day.

1/16: Today, I started my morning off with TG. As the director of community relations, she deals with all forms of the community. This morning, I joined her as she gave a tour to a media location scout. We showed a portion of the hospital that was vacant, with empty nurses’ stations and patient rooms. This was really interesting, because there’s two purposes of trying to sell Piedmont as a film location. The first purpose is to create income for the hospital. The second purpose is to promote Piedmont Athens Regional and its services. Meaning that if the film chooses the Piedmont location, Piedmont will offer varying services, and therefore hope to receive notice and promotion from the film for such services. It’s not a linear form of health promotion, but it ultimately aims to improve the uptake and publicity of health information. Following this, I discussed my monthly schedule with TM. We discussed health promotion ideals, and she explained her job here is more connection based, rather than clinical. Still, she aims to increase Piedmont’s connections by acknowledging our health and wellness services. We came to an understanding of what events of hers would be ideal for me to attend, and the ones that I would get the most benefit out of. After assisting TG in organizing the office space and preparing materials for a large event, I was able to sit down with AD. AD spearheads SafeKids Athens. This group focuses on vehicle, water, household, and helmet safety, all of which is taught to both parents/caregivers and children. I really appreciated AD’s efforts and all that she does. We discussed specific dates of which I can help her, one being where I will aid in her carseat checks. Following this lengthy chat, it was time for me to head home for the weekend!

Summary/Reflection: This past week was an exciting experience. Working with HB and a company’s biometric data, the conversations allowed me to actually implement ideals I’ve learned through health promotion, specifically community health. By reading the health data and comparing it to previous years, it highlighted health gaps, personal and cumulative health status, and how health education should be tailored for this population. This data examination showed me the difficulty of establishing an effective plan for workplace health and wellness. With such variety in demographics and health status within workplaces, finding an incentive that is strong and achievable while also aiming to improve the most common health issues is so difficult. After learning about HB’s past experience, I suggested an anonymous report from company staff that offers information on their health worries and what incentive would encourage them to improve it. Regardless, learning the power of literature, discussion, and general understanding will be ongoing. Targeted, thoughtful action is needed going forward in workplace wellness. Attending the breastfeeding support class with SR gave me the opportunity to work directly with the community in a community setting. Though I didn’t contribute to planning in this setting, I was able to speak to new mothers about their baby’s health. From this, I learned the vulnerability in community health, seeing nervous new mothers lean on resources and others for support. Going forward, I hope to continue serving these populations and grow in understanding their issues.

.

Daily Tasks: 1/20-1/23

1/20: Today, I started off the day with HB in the office. We began to read through the company’s biometric data again, finishing off the data review. This reason for this raw review is to ensure the data is accurately imputed, as it impacts the company’s insurance premiums. Following this, we joined a Teams meeting with Piedmont’s stroke coordinator and a coordinator for UGA’s employee health. HB and the stroke coordinator will be hosting a class on heart health in a few weeks, and they reviewed what was expected and what would be discussed. They plan to discuss and present on risk factors for poor heart health and outcomes, of which I will help create the material. After I ate lunch. TM came in and I helped her create materials for an event in Jefferson tomorrow. I will be attending the “Women in Business” event, and help TM in setting up the tent and handing out Piedmont health and wellbeing resources. We created three different types of handout gifts, with a little game. The game will involve a color coded spinner wheel. People will walk up and spin the wheel. It will land on BMI, self/health-esteem, or resolutions. Depending on what it lands on, we will ask statistical or trivia-based questions accordingly. The prizes/handouts based on the topic are a waist measuring tape (BMI), a pocket mirror (self/health-esteem), or a notepad and pen (resolutions). Today, I organized the questions, prizes, and stapled appropriate Piedmont resources to each gift. Resources varied from weight management, to mental health, to counseling. Following this, it was time to go pick up my newly printed intern badge and go home!
1/21: I started my day with HB in the main tower of the hospital. We had errands to run in preparation for tomorrow’s health fair. We visited and gathered materials from the stroke educator and the trauma prevention coordinator. I started to help load all of the materials into wagons, but had to leave for the day’s event. I drove to the Jackson County Historic Courthouse for the Women in Business meeting with TM. When I got there, our tent was already set up. Women from both small and large businesses in the surrounding counties would walk up to the tent and spin the wheel. Each interaction luckily went exactly how we planned and how I described yesterday. I got to discuss health resources with nearly all fifty women that attended. At this event, I was provided lunch before hearing the 2025 Jackson County Woman of the Year speak. She talked about her history of mentoring young girls in the area, leading her to founding Legacy Youth Mentoring. It was an awesome event and I got to speak with many women about common health issues (BMI, self-esteem, and physical goals). Once the event ended, I drove back to Piedmont. At Piedmont, I continued to help HB load the wagons  in her car and got to look through finalized materials for tomorrow’s event. I assisted AD with a few simple data tasks and then it was time to go home.

1/22: Today, I helped manage and present the Piedmont tables at the ACC Government Health Fair. This event was held at the Classic Center, and was a health fair for all ACC government workers or retirees. The Community Relations department had three tables, one for Stop the Bleed training, one for stroke prevention and general health resources, and one was for fall/trauma prevention and SafeKids. Each table had at least one of my staff members working it, so I floated around depending on demand. I helped the most at the fall/trauma prevention table and the Stop the Bleed table. I learned Stop the Bleed training as we set up, and was then able to teach and explain it to twelve people. At the fall prevention table, I really liked reading through one of the take-home manuals with the older adults that were interested. It provided a checklist of things to maneuver or remove from the home to prevent accidents. I was able to walk through this with around eight people. When my help wasn’t needed in presenting or explaining, I also collected numbers of how many people each table interacted with and what resources they discussed. The Stop the Bleed training table taught the mechanisms to 78 people, which is really awesome because it takes time to learn and the table didn’t offer any walkaway prizes. All day, though, was consumed by managing and talking at this fair. Halfway through, we were provided lunch. At 3 pm, the event ended. We packed up and went home for the day!

1/23: Today, I spent the day with AD. We worked on supplies for the upcoming Howard Stroud event in a few weeks. This took up most of my day. We created and designed promotional flyers, health encouraging props for the photo booth, and table tents. We also celebrated the auxiliary team’s 2025 achievements. I was able to meet Piedmont’s CEO and clinical nurse officer. After discussing plans for remote work with the upcoming weather, it was time to head home.

Summary/Reflection: This week, I was able to have a lot of interaction with the community. I was able to design health communication and resource materials, specifically tailored to a population. This was at the Women in Business meeting, where I was able to create an interactive game, address common health concerns, and provide population-specific healthcare resources. That day, I interacted with at least 15 women by myself, handing out and explaining hopefully helpful resources. At the ACC Health Fair, I was also able to directly offer healthcare resources and education to individuals. At this fair, I also used simple data collection methods to use for Piedmont statistics of how many people received health education or relevant materials. Outside of what I was able to do for others, I also got to learn this week. I learned training mechanisms, such as Stop the Bleed. This week specifically, I identified mechanisms the office uses to create health pamphlets and paper communication. Understanding these varying topics improves my ability to market resources and education to the community. Also in the office, we completed the review of a company’s biometric data. This process has shown me the process of understanding the health priorities of a population, working with partners to achieve desired health outcomes, and identifying what materials hold a high probability of benefitting the population. This week allowed me to understand the background work of delivering health education to a population or community, which is very valuable in the scope of health promotion.

.

Daily Tasks: 1/27-1/30

1/27: Today, I came in at 1:15pm due to UGA’s postponement of classes. I started my short day helping AD enter and analyze SafeKids Athens data. This data was from the last 4 months, and included a variety of events put on by AD, but also KC’s and SR’s events. I got to see the objectives and numbers relevant to these events, both how many people were reached and how many items were given out. The most common events overall are elementary school education, car seat check events/appointments, community household safety classes, and prenatal classes. Once we put in a little of this data, we ran an overview of the data for the months of September and October and noticed things such as the fact that elementary school education had the largest audience. After finishing this, we began working on flyers and fun knicknacks for the Howard Stroud event on February 7th. I will be working the event day and will acknowledge the impact and purpose of the event then! After finishing these tasks, I went home.

1/28: AD reserved me for my entire 6 hour day. We started again by putting in data from the events for November, December, and January. With numerous events to go through from AD, KC, and SR, I found out that only certain events are applicable for the SafeKids Coalition. Anything that promotes the safety and wellbeing of an infant, child, or teen, whether that be direct education to them or to their parents/caregivers, is valid for submission as SafeKids data. Again, I continued to notice that elementary education had the most outreach. The most equipment (safe sleep sets, bassinets, carseats) were given out in individual, personalized appointments. Trying to quantify these different impacts was difficult for personal evaluations, but both formats were utilized and therefore essential. After lunch, we completed the agenda for the Howard Stroud event. We planned our trip to the Arthur M. Blank Hospital Friday, of which I’ll explain Friday. I then was tasked with laminating sheets for the upcoming event. Once I finished this, it was time to leave!

1/29: I came into the office today and began helping HB with an educational powerpoint on stroke and cardiovascular disease. Her and Piedmont’s stroke coordinator were invited to instruct this month’s health class to UGA faculty. For the powerpoint, we wanted to hit all of the major points, as they only have 30 minutes to present. So we included information on risk factors, nutrition, exercise, stress, the physiology of how both events occur, and how to create a healthy routine. We found statistics about stress and exercise relevant to the populations and heart attacks and included them in the powerpoint. After ironing out the visual details on the slides, I began to help TG for the upcoming blood drive. I edited the flyer and made 75 copies to place around the hospital. Then, we reviewed where I would need to place these next week. Following this, I went home.

1/30: I started my day off early, meeting AD at her house to drive with her and the ACC fire crew to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. At CHOA, there was a SafeKid Georgia coalition meeting with all coalitions in the state. The style of the meeting was surrounding their numbers and impacts from the year, with outstanding coalitions having time to share their events. SafeKids Athens presented their skits. They go to elementary schools in Oconee and Athens, and the Athens YMCA. The skits are designed to be interactive and exciting for children, with varying ones for fire safety, booster seat safety, lighter safety, and water safety. They did the skits exactly how they would in an elementary school setting, treating the audience as the students. Through the skits, they highlighted safety, but also focused on parental involvement. Other coalitions discussed their tactics to reach younger populations in schools, including strong principal and parental communication. Additionally, they discussed career pipelines for teenagers in underserved areas. With this, they described a system that teaches at-risk teens safety while also strengthening their future. We had lunch, then I was able to take a tour of the hospital. After this, we listened to a discussion by a nurse who performs car seat checks- largely for special needs children. This requires another layer of safety. For example, children with down syndrome have hypermobility and are able to maneuver themselves outside of their car seat. She presented a new tool that connects the arm straps of the seat, and showed how to remove the tool in an emergency. Throughout the day, there was a consistent message of improving low-income health education by reaching children. Higher income children have the privilege to receive quality care, and with that comes consistent health education. Lower income children often don’t receive this care consistency, making it necessary for SafeKids to step in for daily safety understandings. After the last coalition spoke, it was time to return to Athens.

Summary/Reflection: This week was filled with establishing forms of strong communication for varying audiences and advocacy for low-income Athens’ children. Largely, my week included data review. This Safekids Athens data review and interpretation established numbers and populations, what was given to the population, and how many communication materials were received. This showed, through the delivery channel, what at-risk populations were reached, if they further were provided with a crucial donation (car seat, sleep sack, etc), and if they further reached out for support based on the educational materials. This identifies community gaps and gaps within SafeKid’s outreach. With the new year, this allows the coalition to strengthen their attempts to reach the community. At the meeting Friday, this information was shared among all of the other coalitions. Engaging with the other SafeKids groups allowed us to learn from their strengths and weaknesses, and even allowed them to suggest new ideas to strengthen the Athens coalition. For example, we received a suggestion about using a QR code on a poster at events and at parent pick-ups. Using this, combined with the paper materials children are given, will allow parents to conveniently understand what resources and items are available to them. I really enjoyed this aspect of the week and have found a new passion in advocacy. On the day I worked with HB in designing a powerpoint for UGA staff, I had to go through steps in order to provide information that would actually reach the audience. We/I used the Transtheoretical Model of change. Since this informational session is sign-up only, it seems that those attending would be in the contemplation or preparation phase. With this, we tailored the powerpoint to convince those attending (and presumably in the contemplation or preparation) to continue forward in strengthening their heart/brain health. After designing the powerpoint to be optimistic, HB ran through it using me as the audience. I think this was an effective way to make sure the powerpoint holds the same tone as we hope to see the day of the event. Helping with the blood drive outreach gave me freedom to design communication channels on my own. Knowing the outlay of the hospital, I decided that flyers (that I edited for the hospital’s audience) should be placed in the common rooms of each clinical wing and on the cafeteria tables. Overall, I really enjoyed this week and felt like I was involved in meaningful work.

Daily Tasks: 2/3-2/7

2/3: I started my day off unpacking in the office, then immediately walking over to the Healing Lodge on Piedmont’s campus. SR messaged me early this morning asking to help out in one of her maternity classes this morning. Today was mother and baby yoga, where mothers bring their infants to relax and meditate while their baby is nearby. A lot of the moves were respective of the baby on the mat, but when the babies needed interaction and/or soothing, I would get to hold or play with them. I also was able to pass out randomized cards to each of the moms. Each mom got two for the duration of the class, with each holding an uplifting message regarding maternal mental health or positive mother-baby reassurance. After the class, I helped SR clean up the yoga mats and yoga blocks. On the short walk back to the office, SR asked me to work with her and other colleagues on ideas for Black Maternal Health Week in April. Of course I said yes, and I will be joining a meeting with all collaborators next week. Once I got back to the office, I created printable stickers for supplies needed in the Howard Stroud event this Saturday. Assisting AD, I also found material for one of the speakers. He is speaking about EMS/emergency responder preparedness, but lacked access to print out materials. So, I created a checklist sheet of information that would speed the process for emergency responders regarding a patient. After I completed this, it was time to head home.

2/5: Today, I spent my entire day dedicated to finishing up materials for the Howard Stroud event on Saturday. The first thing I did was look around the space where the event will be held. AD and I discussed the layout, made sure there were enough tables and chairs, and searched the inventory closet in that same building. We found parking signs, entrance signs, and decorations for the room. After we walked back to the office, I assisted AD in writing the biographies for each guest speaker. There are four speakers, one discussing trauma/fall prevention, one discussing emergency response preparedness, one discussing nutrition, and another discussing smoking cessation. We printed these, then put them in a “master” binder to read off as speakers are invited up to talk. Then, I aided in writing the opening speech about Mr. Stroud. In this we touched on his impact through segregation and integration in Athens, through the school system and as a board member for the hospital. This aimed to be around five minutes, so we went into detail on his life and legacy. After lunch, we came back to create bags for all 175 guests attending. These bags included the event’s agenda, a feedback form about the event (general feedback, feedback about the speakers, and the topics), an informative sheet on African American health, and a Piedmont branded first-aid kit, a pen, and a chapstick. On the back of the feedback form, there are questions specific to the trauma/fall prevention speaker, as she has a grant that requires evaluation. Once we finished all of the bags, I printed Howard Stroud specific papers to put on the parking signs that will be placed outside Saturday morning. After sending a preparatory email to the event’s volunteers, I organized the wagons to move all of the event items to the Medical Services Building, then it was time to head home.

2/6: Today, I had a slightly shorter internship day. I started the morning off waiting for AD. As soon as she got into the office, I helped her search for informational pamphlets/sheets for a local group of older black women that have monthly meetings and discuss health topics. We printed sheets on sodium consumption, blood pressure, specifically black American heart health, and a sheet on resources for women to get a low cost heart-health screening at Piedmont. After this, AD, HB, and I headed over to MSB, where the event for tomorrow is located. We immediately started rearranging and organizing the health fair tables and the 25 dining tables. We set up the Piedmont health fair tables with Piedmont table cloths, and put nice table cloths and centerpieces on the guest’s lunch tables. We cleared out the kitchen space to make room for the caterer tomorrow, then it was time to leave.

2/7: Today was the day for the Howard Stroud Community Symposium event. I arrived an hour and a half before guests to assist in last minute setups. I assisted all of the Community Relations department, whether that be getting snacks laid out, taking photos, assisting in registration, directing volunteers, or assisting the vendors. Before guests arrived, I got the chance to meet the community vendors and see what they were offering. There was a table for “Medic Helping Men,” run by Rodney Willis. He is a paramedic in rural Madison county, and uses outreach to assist middle-aged men who often don’t seek out medical attention. Rodney uses an emphasis on blood pressure to increase education on heart attack and stroke in this demographic. I really, really enjoyed meeting him, learning about his background, and watching him have an impact on a rural population. I also spoke with a woman from the housing authority in Athens. She’s revamping a lead reduction/analysis program in Athens Clarke County. I was able to talk to her about information I had learned in a CPH class, and we exchanged ideas on why lead is still a strong cause of health issues- especially in children. Other tables included hands-only CPR, stop the bleed, fall prevention, and fire safety. After the tabling timeframe, guests entered the auditorium to listen to the speakers. The speakers were Eva Carnigan (fall prevention), Rodney WIllis (“Medic Helping Men”), Margaret Earnest (dietetics and nutrition), and Dr. Rolf Nzalie (Community Care Clinic resident with focus on smoking cessation). I was able to speak in front of the around 120 guests, to introduce myself and Margaret. During the speeches, I was tasked with holding time cards to let speakers know when they had 5 minutes, 3 minutes, and 1 minute remaining to speak. After this, the caterers had set out the food and we were able to enjoy the food and the community. As everyone began to leave, we began receiving the feedback forms and taking down the tablecloths and moving the tables/area back to how it was. Once we were finished, I headed home!

Summary/Reflection: This week allowed me to actually interact with the community that many of our focuses are tailored to. Starting off the week with the mother-baby yoga allowed me to interact with mothers from different demographics while practicing messages tailored towards this general population. Aside, it allowed me to be around children which has been the largest focus of my research. This week was filled with preparation for an event that included many community members. Setting up materials for the event allowed me to emerge in the community, understanding why they need the resources and information that they need. The event let me have personal discussions and introductions with many members of the Athens community. This stands with even something as miniscule as training volunteers, it allowed me to discuss health materials nevertheless. The general, longstanding community members had wonderful outlooks and indirect feedback regarding the aims of the event this year. Regardless, seeing generally underserved community members work with interactive health education tools and receive necessary health information was moving. I really enjoyed these interactions and look forward to our next event. This taught me the power of health interventions when dealing with varying communities, and how much I enjoy facilitating these interventions. Moving forward, I know how much I enjoy advocacy and being able to reach underserved populations. I now look forward to our next event.

.

Daily tasks: 2/10-2/13

2/10: I started my day out at the Athens YMCA, assisting AD in her SafeKids educational lessons. Today, there was a class of pre-k students from an Athens elementary school. The class was split up into three groups, each coming into the room one at a time. They would come in, sit down, and AD and I would introduce ourselves. Then, AD asked about their favorite vegetables, and discussed how many they should be eating a day. I specifically assisted her in holding up the children’s favorite foods and putting them in their correct color basket, after AD asked the class what color each fruit was. We did this same routine for each group. After this, we ran to the hospital to grab knee pads for our next task: CPR and stop the bleed instructionals in Jefferson. We drove to Jefferson High School and set up the powerpoint, the CPR dolls, and the tourniquets. AD and I held three separate classes for this too, to accommodate the Jefferson City School district’s employees. The employees that attended consisted of bus drivers, bus monitors, and teachers. For each class, we started with CPR, as most had some history with certification. We showed them how to use an AED machine, of which are located throughout their schools. With this, they also practiced their hands-only CPR. For stop the bleed, we had two wounded, leg-like models that each group shared. First, they attempted the tourniquet on their own leg, to show how strong and painful it can be with cutting off circulation. Then, we showed them the compression, packing, and tourniquet technique using the models. After this, they tried it for themselves on the model. Once we finished the last class, we packed up the equipment and returned to Athens.

2/11: Today I started the day at Oconee’s Civic Center. I assisted AD, HB, and the Oconee Firefighters in providing stop the bleed training for Oconee’s part-time governmental employees. In this, they learned how to use a tourniquet on themselves, on others, and how to pack a wound using hands-on training. Following this, I drove back to the Piedmont office. AD and I unpacked all of the equipment from today and yesterday, then grabbed some lunch. I spoke with Tammy about my expectations for the upcoming blood drive, which is to place the flyers around the hospital. Then, AD and I began to work on a powerpoint for Rocky Branch’s Career Day tomorrow. She and I will both be attending and presenting on SafeKids points. We included information on helmet safety and emergency preparedness. So, we talked about how the brain is such an important organ and controls the entire body, which is why a helmet is necessary. For emergency preparedness, we talked about 911 and the information to give them if there is an emergency. We used child friendly language and questions and will both work through this powerpoint tomorrow. After we finished this, it was time to head home.

2/12: I started my day at Rocky Branch Elementary School, which held career day today. AD and I checked in and went to our base classroom, which had five rotating classes. We went through the same powerpoint with each class. We started off talking about helmet safety, asking the children if they rode bikes, scooters, or skateboards. We made sure that they knew how to wear the helmet correctly with the “1, 2, 3” rule. 1 means the helmet should sit one inch above the eyebrow. 2 makes a “V” with fingers, which when put over the eye shows that the helmet should go over both sides of the ear. 3 means using three fingers to make sure the helmet is securely strapped under the chin, but not too tight. With this, we discussed the brain and how important it is to keep it safe. Then, we talked about how to call 911. This was broken down into “my name is… who, what, where.” We then talked about carseat safety. AD has an item that we call the “ car seat limbo,” which measures to be 4’9. Almost all of the children were under this, but almost all of them said they didn’t need a car seat, or their parents didn’t make them use one. Talking to children, you have to approach them with information as such. So AD would say “tell your parents it’s unsafe for you to not have a car/booster seat.” At the end of each class, AD would say “if you need a helmet or booster seat, tell your teacher and she will contact me to get you one.” Being a part of a coalition, AD has tons of helmets and carseats, given to her for free. After leaving the school, I briefly stopped by the office to help AD print materials for an upcoming community, drive-up carseat check. Then, I headed over to the Classic Center for the NEGA Empty Bowl Luncheon. This luncheon thanked volunteers and partners of the Northeast Georgia’s Foodbank. As a sponsor, Piedmont had a table. The lunch celebrated what the Foodbank has been able to do, and awarded volunteers. Once this was finished, I returned to the office for the monthly staff meeting, which included the entire team I intern for. They all reviewed their tasks for the month, and highlighted which ones they wanted me to help with. Then, I began my assigned task for the upcoming blood drive at Piedmont. I put up flyers in the Medical Services Building and throughout one of the main hospital’s towers. After this, it was time to head home.

2/13: Today, my day was very short due to working more than my usual hours earlier this week. I briefly stopped by the office to grab the blood drive flyers and tape, and headed right back out to take them to off-campus Piedmont locations. I first drove to the Outpatient Surgery Center, then to a group of varying facilities off Prince Ave. I returned back to the main hospital to place them in the gift shop, the main lobby, and in elevators B-E. Once I finished, I returned the tape  back to the office, confirmed Tuesday’s plan with Tammy, and headed out for the weekend.

Summary/Reflection: This week consisted of evaluation, communication, ethics, and professionalism. Out of these competencies, I most enjoy the communication aspect. This week I achieved this through stop the bleed training, career day teachings, and nutritional classes. Working with priority populations pulls into the ethical aspect, acting with humility and kindness. Through largely working with opinionated children and the underserved Athens’ community this week, acting ethically is on the path to professionalism in both communication and evaluation. This week, I met the ethics/professionalism and communications competencies by instructing and working with numerous children, coming from a variety of households. For example, in the nutritional classes, some children knew healthy food whereas others didn’t. Similarly, in the career day discussions, some children had a carseat whereas others didn’t. This showed me an unequal distribution of resource attainability in Athens families. In the big picture, this means children are made unsafe due to a lack of resources and education, compromising their future. This means direct parental engagement, education, and awareness is necessary going forward in order to improve the children’s outcomes. I met the listed evaluation competencies by reviewing the feedback forms from the Howard Stroud event and reviewing them with my team. This not only showed me the attendees’ opinions, but also what they need in the future. Each person who wrote a topic they hoped to hear more on next year secretly revealed an issue they need help with. Whether that be nutrition counseling or grief counseling, these attendees are searching for information from the only resource they know will likely deliver it to them. Again, this shows an underserved Athens community that wants answers and help, but are limited in where to find these. Going forward, these community members need direct access to resources specific to them, whether that be informational sheets on every resource available or a space for them to privately discuss what they need help with. On a positive note, teaching stop the bleed and CPR helped me learn that there are people in their respective communities that want to improve the health of others around them. These classes this week were elective and not mandatory, meaning these community members took the time out of their day to learn actions that may help them save a life. This training matters because it prevents people from panicking or freezing in a time of a life-or-death emergency. Allotting more time to teach these classes is essential to improving the chance of survival for those experiencing emergencies in the future. Everyday this week, I enjoyed getting out of the office and into the community. It has allowed me to establish connections and relationships with others that will only amplify going forward.

.

Daily Tasks: 2/17-2/20

2/17: I started my day in the Piedmont cafeteria. A group of volunteers assisted my team with making sandwiches to pass out to elementary schools in Athens, Jefferson, and Madison. Many of the schools, but not all, are generally low-income. So, we had multiple assembly lines to make almost 3000 turkey sandwiches. After we finished making the sandwiches, I headed back to the office. I joined HB and AD at a meeting with the Oconee County Board of Education. In this meeting, they discussed the organization of an upcoming training day for CPR/AED and stop the bleed. The meeting discussed timing of the event, whether it occurs in pre-planning or post-planning, and how schools would be divided into the day’s schedule. With many trained CPR/AED and stop the bleed technicians, they would divide the morning and afternoon groups into four “pods” of which switch through half the event time to attend both training sessions. After the meeting, the team discussed ordering more CPR mannequins and AED machines in order to accommodate this group and other large groups in the future. AD and I went for lunch, then returned back to the office. After helping her unload carseat education materials, I followed TG to the Akins Area’s loading dock. We unloaded both medium and large boxes from her car, and began to set/tape them up for lunch distribution to each school at the Education Day event tomorrow. We moved the boxes upstairs to the event area and I headed home!

2/18: Today, I started out in the Piedmont cafeteria again. With many more volunteers than yesterday, we set up assembly lines to bag the sandwiches made yesterday, along with apples, a cookie, chips, and condiments. We put these bags into large wooden crates to be taken to Akin’s arena. After eating breakfast, I met TG at the arena to begin putting the appropriate number of lunches into each pre-labeled school box. Some schools only needed 18 lunches, whereas others needed 250. We also appropriately set out the allergen-labeled lunch boxes for gluten allergies, nut allergies, dairy allergies, and vegetarians. The Education Day event was sponsored by both Piedmont and the Rock Lobsters. The students attended the hockey game at the arena, and halfway through the first period each volunteer assisted respective teachers in passing out the lunches. The students were allowed to keep the Piedmont labeled lunch box that the lunches game in. I left the event early to rush back to the office. I met SR there to join a meeting for the upcoming Black Maternal Health Week event. The event that Piedmont is hosting will occur on April 11th, and we plan to offer a time window for free family or baby photography sessions with light refreshments. This is similar to the event that SR held last year, but this year I’m able to help. In the 10 days leading up to the event, SR will be out of the office. So in that time frame, I will be the point of contact for interested community members, RSVPs, and with the other female Black leaders that are involved and hosting events for Black Maternal Health Week. After the meeting and discussion with SR, I assisted HB in organizing papers for the blood drive sign-up we are holding in the cafeteria tomorrow. Once this was finished, it was time for me to leave the office.

2/19: I got into the office today and immediately started an errand for TG. This was to transport the Teddy Bear Clinic t-shirts and new Piedmont tablecloths to the Community Resource department’s office. There, I was able to meet the Clinical Nurse Educator, who is in charge of the student nurses at Piedmont. Not only is this an awesome connection as I enter nursing school in the fall, I also found out that it was her mother that contributed to the discovery of AIDs. I came back to our office, helped load the wagon with a tablecloth, sign up sheets, and incentives, and HB and I headed to the Piedmont cafeteria. We set up a table at the cafeteria’s entrance to encourage sign-ups for next week’s blood drive. We had both a paper and electronic sign up option, and offered leftover lunch boxes from Education Day for those that signed up with us. We had 23 people sign up, which given that we are a week away, this is almost halfway to our goal of 50 blood donations. After this, I got back to the office and met up with SR. We headed over to the MSB for her “Super Siblings” class. The purpose of this class is to teach toddlers (aged 2-5) how to handle a new sibling. Parents attend as well, and are often expecting a new baby. This class is interactive and teaches the children how to hold, talk, touch, and help their new sibling. We teach them boundaries and encourage their kindness with their new sibling. After the class ended and we put up the supplies, I headed home for the day.

2/20: I started my day today at Better Communities Collaborative. HB had a class with their workers for CPR/AED and Stop the Bleed certification. I’ve seen instructional classes on both of these with both HB and AD, but had not seen an actual certification class with them yet. When I arrived, I assisted in laying out the mannequins and floor pad for the students’ knees. I also passed out the instructional books to each attendee, which was nine land surveyors. The class was largely CPR-based and taught the 30 compressions and two breaths. After multiple rounds of the basic CPR, we highlighted the use of AEDs if they’re available. Then, we moved onto Stop the Bleed, and HB taught the usual packing, tourniquet, and pressure techniques. Once the class was finished, I helped HB pack the tools up and I was finished for the day.

Summary/Reflection: This past week consisted of numerous forms of assessing, planning, action, advocation, and communication. Working towards the Education Day allowed me to directly aid in intervention delivery for a priority population: children. Prior to the intervention, it took planning and coordination to ensure the process was efficient and that volunteers understood protocol. Monitoring throughout the intervention further assessed the process as it occurred, to ensure the needs of the children were fully met. Through this, I learned that it takes a team to make a large impact. For Education Day, it couldn’t have been done without planning, monitoring, and all of the volunteers. This matters going forward because it sets out a regimen to process future outreach. Planning for the future, I should plan to have multiple organizers when working on a project this large. From this event, it’s notable that teamwork makes the event, and additional organizers could only strengthen the planning, training, and monitoring involved. In establishing other events, such as the Oconee County CPR/STB training and the Black Maternal Health Week (BMHW) event, it allowed me to focus on the planning process more so than before. For both events, I met with relevant partners in order to create the event. In both cases, I learned that the partners understand aspects of the population that our team doesn’t. For Oconee County, the partners understand the teacher’s schedule more than our team does, offering input on how to approach the event. Similarly, for the BMHW event, the partners are actually Black women, so they know how we should approach the population as white women. This matters because in an educational role, we must understand the population we are trying to reach in order to actually reach them. Going forward, this has shown me the importance of collaboration in event planning, knowing that it is key to working with the anticipated populations. I also got to participate in hands-on education with a few children of Athens in SR’s “Super Sibling” class. This taught me that working with certain populations demands certain requirements. This group was toddlers aged 2 to 5, and I really learned that certain populations require certain communication levels. This matters because for this specific population, using adult communication styles would lessen the information dissemination. Going forward, this serves as a future reference that special populations have special requirements. This week has allowed me to become more understanding and comfortable with the planning process, while also growing my established comfortability in providing education.

.

Daily Tasks: 2/23-2/26

2/23: I started my day in the office today, cleaning my desk space and organizing paperwork. Once SR got into the office, we began discussing a new task for me to complete. SR does the maternity programs, and doesn’t often have time to do the tabling events as she is mostly in the field with her work, rather than having time to talk about all that she does. However, she has an upcoming resource fair to attend at UGA, and needs a table piece that showcases all of her work. My task is to create a poster with all of her classes and descriptions, check prices at local printing businesses, and get it printed. For this, she is giving me the reins for design and layout, just needing to be in Piedmont colors. I’m able to work on this at a leisurely pace, but am excited for a craft improving maternal/baby health outreach. After this, I assisted AD in my first carseat check. AD is both a carseat technician and the head of the SafeKids Athens coalition, making her a large resource for no-cost car seats and checks. This particular check was for a three-year-old, of which the guardian believed the child’s carseat was expired and needed a new one. Upon their arrival, AD realized that the three-year-old’s carseat was perfectly fine, just not securely tethered in and thus moving around the back seat. This guardian also brought in a five-year-old, but didn’t request a carseat or check with them. As AD asked questions, we quickly realized this child was in a booster seat, though they were very small and still needed a full-support seat. As a teaching, AD has carseat models built into the seat of the car in the office. So, guardians come into the office, AD shows them how to properly use/insert the carseat on the models, then she will give them a new carseat if needed. Before they leave, AD follows them to the car to watch the guardian insert the carseat properly. After I got to observe this check, it was time to leave!

2/24: When I got to the office, I stopped by HB’s office to check if I could help her with anything. Tomorrow, we have a biometric screening health fair which requires equipment such as blood pressure machines, a scale, and a portable height measurer. It also requires smaller items, like clipboards, paper, pens, and resource sheets. Once we rounded these items up, we packed them into the cart to load them into HB’s car. After this, AD and I had another carseat check! This one was only a check, and was for two new, expecting parents. They brought both of their vehicles, one being an SUV and the other being a truck. They both had bases for the infant seat, but wanted to ensure they were correctly installed. Through this, I discovered that the type of carseat, type of base, and type of car all changes the best practice for installation and safety. Since the mother was almost full-term, we gave her resources for SR’s postpartum groups such as Breastfeeding Support. Once this was finished, AD and I were running a little late to a virtual meeting with HB and Morgan County School officials. Just like what the team does for Oconee Schools, Morgan County wants them to come out to their school system for CPR and STB training. This meeting went over the logistics, such as time, how many sessions, and how many personnel would be required. This is still in the early stage of planning, so Morgan County’s officials will contact other relevant parties within their system as we move forward in planning. Once this was over, I headed out of the office for the day.

2/25: This morning started at Oconee State Bank’s headquarters, where our team and volunteers helped put on a biometric screening fair. This had a blood test (BMC and CBC), height, weight, waist circumference, blood pressure, and counseling. This was my first biometric screening event, so it was really awesome to see the efficiency of teamwork and the excitement from participants/employees. As each employee walked in, they were greeted and wrote their times on two pieces of paper-like tape. They then moved to the bloodwork station, which had two phlebotomists. Then they moved to me, where my role was to ensure that each participant/employee had their paperwork completed, which included largely generic information and a signature. After they filled out the personal information section, they moved onto height, weight, waist circumference, and blood pressure. After all of these sections were filled out by the professional, they moved into a private room for health counseling based on the findings. Once all 19 employees finished, I/we headed back to the office. At the office, I organized a sheet based on the Blood Connection’s donation criteria. With this, the original flyer, a signup sheet, and a tablecloth, HB and I headed to the cafeteria once again. Today we struggled with getting signups, so we discussed with TG another incentive to add: four Rock Lobster tickets. After three hours of outreach for signups, we returned to our office. TG asked me to make a sign for the blood drive tomorrow, highlighting the grand prize of hockey tickets. Once I made and printed this document, I headed out of the office.

2/26: My day today entirely revolved around the Blood Connection blood drive. Over the past few weeks, I was able to assist the blood drive committee in their advertising preparation measures. Today, though, was finally the day of the blood drive. I arrived at the office early to assist TG and HB with set-up. We had four chairs for the people getting their blood drawn, and the Blood Connection team set up two private booths for patient questions prior to their drawing. We also set out a number of chairs for people to sit before and after getting their blood drawn, and set up a table of snacks and small sodas to drink after. Next to the check-in table, we set out small gifts for participants, including socks, lunch boxes, journals, and chip-clips. Once everything was set up, HB and I organized the check-in table. We had the sheet of paper signups and a sheet of online signups, both organized by appointment time. We had QR codes printed on papers for people to easily scan, helping expedite the questions asked by the Blood Connection staff. We also gave them a clipboard with information needed for Piedmont liability and a “Why I donate” sheet. The “Why I donate” sheet, once completed, was placed into a bucket to be drawn for the hourly prizes. With all of this set-up, HB and I sat at the table nearly the entire day. We checked people in, took some photos, and had some conversations. Once it was nearly time for me to leave, I reviewed the number of donations and discussed ways to improve the efficiency of the drive with HB. I walked back to the office and talked with TG about room for improvement for next year’s drive. The largest area of improvement was requesting more technicians. With an overload of healthcare professionals wanting to donate during a morning time slot, many hoped to donate on their lunch break. With only four technicians doing the blood draws, five professionals had to leave without donating. After talking with TG, I checked in with TM. I asked her if she had any events in the upcoming months to go ahead and add to my calendar. We chatted as she collected events to email to me. Then, I grabbed my stuff and headed out of the office for the weekend.

Summary/Reflection: This week has incorporated planning, implementation, advocacy, and a little evaluation. I’ve noticed that my team’s work each week surrounds putting on events that engage the community or specific population to improve some capacity of health. This week, I was excited to evaluate the outcomes and compare them to prior years, being able to see an increase. With the blood drive, I was able to help with each step of putting on the event. I was at the first meeting with the Blood Connection, I helped weekly with advertising, and I was able to see the improvement in numbers from years prior. We knew what planning outcome we wanted the most: to see an increase in blood donations. To do this, we created new, strong marketing mechanisms and coordinated an effective delivery. I’ve been able to observe the latter half of event delivery, but have yet to see the outcome of an event I was so involved with. Being able to evaluate the outcome of something I contributed to was exciting. Looking at last year’s data, there were only 20 people who donated, compared to this year’s 59 people! From this, I learned the power of consistent marketing. Dedicating days to getting the event noticed by the public seemed to have really contributed to an improvement in donations. Personally, I also learned that I find satisfaction in being able to see data improvements. It helps me recognize my contribution through the struggle of feeling as if I’m not doing enough. Also, this helped me recognize the openness of my team. Working with individuals who are open to recognizing fixable issues creates a strong environment for improvement. Going forward, not only do I realize that I enjoy the data analyzation process, I also know that it takes dedication and persistence to produce growing outcomes. Relevant to planning, I also was able to join a meeting with Morgan County School officials. For this project, I will no longer be an intern when it comes to fruition, but I will be able to assist with the organization. I’ve been able to see this process before, working with appropriate partners and strongly eliciting their input. Each time, I enjoy getting to hear each partner or stakeholder recognize needed improvements within their populations. Especially when working with children/students, CPR and STB training is more necessary than ever. The evolving, dangerous nature of our society gives coordinating these events their purpose. Moving forward, marketing for these services needs to become widespread to increase the training, therefore increasing the safety of our state’s children. Another event, the Oconee State Bank biometric screening, allowed me to be a part of something new. My team performs these fairly often, but I had yet to be able to be involved. I already knew that I enjoy getting to be out in the field with the community. In the health promotion/education events so far, though, I’ve really only emphasized the educational aspects. For this biometric screening, I was able to assist in collecting the baseline data and understand the analytical process behind these screenings. I also saw how effective simple measures are. By this, I mean that I assumed biometric screenings involved high-technology. However, I saw how data was efficiently collected using a loose measuring tape, a classic scale, and typical blood pressure monitors. For me, this highlighted that it doesn’t take unattainable measures to contribute to an event like this. Additionally, I was once again able to see the gratitude of those involved. I find it exciting that people of all demographics are excited to take the steps to improve their health. Going forward, I recognize that these events are as simple and efficient as you make them, and have grown in confidence in aiding in them. Behind the scenes this week, I have been helping create a visual aid for Piedmont’s maternity programs. This visual will only have one use, being a tabletop visual for educational events. I enjoy getting projects such as this, as it allows me to be creative in design and use my health promotion knowledge to formulate the visual. I understand what points are most easily perceived and effective, and will continue to organize the aid with that in mind. My passion for this design has grown even stronger through my internship, as I’ve first hand been able to see what visuals the community is drawn to. With this, I plan to design with the community receiving the information’s perspective at the forefront. Overall, it’s been another productive and exciting week in the office!

.

Daily Tasks: 3/3-3/6

3/3: Today, I started out my day at my desk. After sorting through paperwork and cleaning off my desk, I began working on creating SR’s maternity program informational poster presentation. She sent the information to my email, but gave me full creative freedom in the layout and design of the poster. I played around with the layout, but ultimately found a visually appealing format and sent it to SR so that she can review my description of her classes and add a Piedmont logo. Just as I pressed send on the email, she walked into the office. We discussed my thought process on the design, but still decided she would review it individually and send it back to me so that I can send it to the printing company. Once I finished this up, I began researching local pediatric offices for AD. For an upcoming children’s event at the hospital, AD and I will be hosting a carseat check outside of the building. Local offices already know about the main event, but we plan to take informational sheets on the drive-up carseat check (on the day of the event), how to schedule a personal appointment, and safety regulations on carseat, water, and home safety. So, AD asked me to curate a list of the local offices to distribute these sheets. Once I made this list, I then made 200 copies of each sheet, some for us to distribute and some for TG to distribute at an upcoming food bank. Soon after, I ate lunch and AD came into the office. I assisted her in adding SafeKids data for the month to the community impact report. Most of February’s events were individual carseat checks and educational field trips for local elementary schools at the YMCA. Once we found a stopping point in entering this data, it was time to head home.

3/4: When I arrived at the office this morning, I reviewed some of AD’s voicemails. One was regarding scheduling a carseat appointment, with also requesting a gifted carseat. The other call asked about inviting AD to train an electrical company in CPR/AED and STB. Workplace wellness is managed and goes through HB, so I took notes on the voicemail and passed it along to HB. I was with her when she returned the call, and was shocked to find out that our workplace wellness services have geographical limits. Though the business is stationed in Winder, they requested that the class(es) be taught in Norcross, which is outside of our allowed reach. After discussing this with the business director, they were willing to hold the class at their Winder office. Hopefully, this class will occur during my time with Piedmont so I can attend, but the date/time of the event is still being planned. Once AD came in, I began helping her again with entering SafeKids Data into the community impact report. We had some technological issues and had to call Piedmont’s IT department. With their help, we saved the document and were able to continue with our day. We grabbed all of the copies made yesterday of informational sheets, some of AD’s business cards, and some SafeKids branded icepacks. Using the sheet I made yesterday of local pediatric offices, we went around town and handed these sheets out, informing the office staff of the meaning behind the carseat checks. Once we went to four offices and grabbed some lunch, we headed back to the office. With SR, HB, and AD, I walked over to the main office to celebrate a long-time Piedmont employee’s retirement. Once I said my congratulations and goodbyes, I headed out of the office.

3/5: This morning was another YMCA field trip taught by AD. So, I arrived at the YMCA and went ahead and set up the room before AD arrived. When she arrived, she brought in some stethoscopes for the kids to use. Today’s lesson was for fourth graders from Barnett Shoals Elementary, and was about lung health. The lesson was interactive, asking the children what they know about the lungs, how important they are, what they do, and what would happen without them. We then went into an elementary-level discussion on lung anatomy and gas exchange, explaining how the lungs help us breathe, play, run, and live. Then, we discussed what to do and what not to do to improve lung health. We talked about the impact of smoking/vaping, healthy environments, and doctor visits. Then, we passed out pre-cleaned stethoscopes for the children to listen to their heart and lungs. While they did this, we walked around to assist them in stethoscope placement. As always with children under 13, AD discusses carseat regulations for the group. I always love this part, because children are so quick to admit something so incredibly important, such as “My mom lets me ride in the front seat.” After all of the groups were finished, AD and I cleaned up the room. We went to the community relation manager’s office and discussed the upcoming field trips and how to improve the children’s adherence and attention. Once we finished this conversation, the work day was over and it was time to head home.

3/6: Today, AD, HB, TG, and I each met at Athens Technical College for Athens Clarke County Career Day. Athens Tech hosted the event, with many local Athens vendors. Piedmont, University Cancer and Blood Center, UGA Veterinary Medicine, Cosmetology, Culinary, and Trade Educators each had a table. Each middle school in Athens brought their eighth grade students and they all were able to walk around the stations throughout their 45 minute timeslot. The point of this event was to immerse students into topics that might interest them, and ultimately direct their future career. At our station, we showcased CPR. We arrived early to set up our area. Our most important items were our CPR mannequins, of which we set out 10 of. These were placed on the floor with small knee-support pads. On the table, we had informational sheets about hands-only CPR compared to traditional CPR. We also had little gifts for the students to grab, including sunscreen and chapstick. I really enjoyed this event. With each middle school attending, I think the event was very inclusive and informative to a variety of demographics. I was able to not only instruct CPR formalities, but also was able to talk to other vendors. For example, an Athens Tech vendor had a CPR mannequin that showed red or green colors to ensure correct technique. With this and many other healthcare vendors that I found interesting, I think I learned just as much as the children. Once we finished the four-45 minute blocks, had lunch, and packed up, it was time to head out for break.

Summary/Reflection: This past week was another week of largely planning and communication. Of course, in health education, these two competencies are standard and necessary to perform in the community. In terms of planning, this week I assisted SR in creating a tabletop poster to exemplify maternal health and offer mother-baby resource classes. I also formulated a list of pediatricians offices for AD, planning to improve pediatric health/carseat awareness through direct discussion with staff and professionals at each clinic. In both of these moments of planning, communication was crucial. For SR’s poster, communication design had to be taken into consideration so that the information could be easily understood. Similarly, in planning and taking trips to pediatrician offices, we communicated directly with professionals and staff. Using these skills, written and oral, dictates how well the information will be taken by each respective desired audience. Through this, I’ve learned how communication can aid in the planning process. Planning anything individually just makes it an idea until it’s collaborated on through discussion or opinion. Communication can also influence exposure to a desired outcome. Talking with varying populations or partners can further spread or reiterate the message to the intended population. This matters as planning is difficult in nature, requiring many aspects to be met before implementation can occur. Understanding how to improve planning protocol and/or improve discussions to ultimately improve implementation outcomes is important. Going forward, I need to continue to grow in comfortability of having idea-strengthening discussions. My most exciting part of the week was Thursday, where I helped AD teach fourth graders about lung health at the YMCA. Competency wise, this is largely just communication, as I tailored the message, delivered the presentation, used public speaking and facilitation skills. But, these health education measures require advocacy (identifying the causes of decreased lung health) and implementation (by delivering the information). Reflecting on this week and weeks prior, it’s becoming transparent that health education requires each competency to some extent to be successful. For example, without advocacy, the education provided would not be targeted nor directed to the population. However, knowing that vaping is becoming prevalent in young middle schoolers, we were able to make an age appropriate lesson to inform their future decisions. We usually do this when teaching children, but we typically focus on the material being age appropriate rather than situationally appropriate. This week though, we made the lesson situationally appropriate. I really enjoyed the lesson and presenting it. Fourth grade was a good age to present facts to, they were intrigued and positive. It was so awesome to see children invested in their health, which matters as they grow older and are able to make healthy or unhealthy decisions. Going forward, I’m able to recognize the impact of situationally appropriate health education and how it strengthens a positive health outcome. On Friday, my team served at Athens Tech’s Career Day. This was a different age from what I have been working with throughout my internship. Through each timeslot, the kids were given freedom to move to what they were drawn to. As we held CPR practice, I appreciated seeing the children committed to learning the basics. With this, communication was the main competency met. I really focused on the factors that affect communication. In this population, communication can make or break their inspiration, interest, or excitement to do something. I tried to level with their age and humor and separate the student cliques as they learned/practiced CPR. Through this I learned that as children age, they need authoritative but reasonable speech. For example, if I just yelled at the kids for whatever reason, attempted to control them, and spoke with demands, they would be less willing to absorb information. Finding common ground to relate to them, laugh with them, and genuinely talk to them seemed to make the difference. This matters as I continue with health education, hopefully becoming a pediatric nurse. In that setting, I would see the same spectrum of ages and would need to be able to adjust my delivery across them all. Once again, it was a wonderful week with my team and I look forward to the next.

.

Daily Tasks: 3/17-3/21

3/17: Today was my first day back to the office following spring break. When I arrived, I caught up with members of the team as they came in. I assisted HB in sorting payroll documents for the last few months’ CPR certification classes. Then, AD came in. I helped her craft an email to volunteers for Saturday’s Teddy Bear Clinic event. In this email, we discussed dresscode, parking, and other commonly received questions for the annual event. Once this was sent, I rode with AD to Athens Technical College for the Regional Trauma Advisory Committee (RTAC) meeting. Here, we met with other Piedmont Athens employees, Piedmont Walton employees, local EMTs, and a St. Mary’s employee. In the meeting, we were provided lunch and discussed past and upcoming safety events. To start off the meeting, each area/hospital’s entities went through recent event successes and failures, stakeholders they encountered, and their event’s outreach capabilities. Once everyone discussed these, we moved on to discussing upcoming events and spaces that should be on the radar when planning future events. EC, Piedmont Athens’ Trauma Educator led the meeting, and provided great ideas in local elderly communities. She also works on fall prevention, and discussed how this could be fit in many different event types/spaces. AD and HB both went over their respective safety events for the upcoming months, talked about the event’s purpose, and asked for volunteers if necessary. Once we left the meeting, AD and I sped back to the office. Here, we loaded CPR mannequins, practice AED machines (with both adult and pediatric pads), and SafeKids informational sheets. With all the supplies, we headed over to Oconee County Elementary School to train staff on CPR. 20 teachers attended, all previously CPR certified, but needed a refresher. AD talked to them about CPR, showed an educational video, and then had a group, hands-on instruction. We talked about hands-only CPR versus compression/breathing CPR, showed how to perform the heimlich, and discussed how the AED works. The school had two AEDs, both of which I went and grabbed for AD to demonstrate how that specific brand relates and differs to the example AED we use for instruction. Once all questions were answered, we headed back to Piedmont, and I headed home.

3/18: Today was a repetitive, but fun day. I started out the morning arriving and meeting AD at Oconee County Primary School. Here, we both checked in at the front desk and were met by the school’s nurse. We were stationed in a circular hallway and set out the materials to teach handwashing and germ prevention to all of the school’s second graders. We had six rotations, with a lunch break as the students ate. For each rotation, we held the same instruction. First, we discussed how to properly cough and sneeze (into the arm/inner elbow region, clothing, or a tissue). We had demonstrations to show how respiratory droplets can spread. First, we showed a six foot long piece of rope, with AD holding one end and me holding the other. As AD spoke about the distance droplets could spread and held her end, I walked towards the students with the other end, highlighting that if AD sneezed or coughed where she was standing and didn’t cover her face, it would easily get germs on them. Interacting with the groups, we asked each how germs enter the body. Largely, students answered correctly, stating the eyes, nose, and mouth. We used this to further explain that touching your mouth, picking your nose, or scratching your eye with dirty hands is exactly what causes them to get sick. What they didn’t know though, was that scrapes or more open wounds are also a way for bacteria/germs to enter their body. Jumping back to respiratory spread, AD prepared a solution of water and food coloring in a spray bottle. To demonstrate the point, I stood about four feet away, holding a white sheet of paper. AD would hold the bottle close to her nose, making a sneezing noise as she sprayed the bottle. This was a clear example of how when the mouth/nose isn’t covered, germs can go everywhere. For the main “experiment,” we had a lotion-like substance and a purple light. The lotion-like substance was skin-tone colored and we referred to it as “fake germs.” I put it on my hands and began high-fiving, fist-bumping, and shaking each student’s hand as they stood in a line. As I did this, AD directed them to look under the light, of which you could see exactly where I touched their hand and how the “germs” transferred onto them. Then, we used this as an area to instruct on proper handwashing. The students returned back in line and we demonstrated how to wash your hands with soap for 20 seconds, scratching under the nails, in between the fingers, and making sure to scrub the top of the hand. Each student washed their hands as instructed, and returned back to the light to see if they washed their hands adequately. As I mentioned, we repeated this same exact instruction for each class until it was time to pack up and leave for the day!

3/19: Today, AD and I taught our lung health class to fourth graders. We met at the YMCA, where we set up the room with the projector, powerpoint, and set out the stethoscopes. We had five groups of children rotating through our class. AD and I utilized the same powerpoint as the last time we did this class, which reviews what the lungs do, their anatomical structure, and what to do/not do for lung health. After we go through the education, we let each student use a stethoscope to hear their lungs and heart. For each group, we followed this same structure. After each group came through, we packed up our room and headed home for the day!

3/20: This morning, I ran by the office to grab our tools for our nutrition lesson with pre-k students. At the office, I grabbed the box of nutritional guidelines with the fake fruits, vegetables, and proteins. AD and I had four groups of children, with each class following the same structure. We’ve done this class before, so this time I understood the main points to convey and how to educate such young children. Once we got to the YMCA, we set up the room with the guidelines hanging up, and attached red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple sheets to the frontside of a table. With each group, we asked each child what their favorite fruit/vegetable was, told them about how it’s good for them, and they would tell us the food’s color for us to place it with the respective colored paper. Once we went through each group, we took down all of our sheets and signage and were done for the day.

3/21: Today, I started my Saturday morning early, helping with the Teddy Bear Clinic. This event is an educational event designed to help children aged 3-8 overcome fear of hospital settings. At the event, each child was provided a stuffed animal that they could walk around with to varying stations to provide kid-friendly medical interventions. The intention is to make children empowered in health care, and recognize that health professionals aim to help, not hurt. The main event was inside, but in the building’s parking lot was a touch-a-truck, and carseat checks. The carseat check event was organized by AD, with the entire team there to help. AD recruited numerous carseat technicians, and we set up 5 bays for cars to pull into. Whether they needed a donated seat or just wanted to check/learn about installation, a tech would walk up and assist them with either. The event also had Beta Club volunteers at a designated children’s station, where children could paint/draw while their parents talked to the technician. Here, I served to facilitate the process, meet people at the entrance to the check, and encourage people entering the main event to get their carseat checked at no cost. For this, we had a raffle prize for anyone getting their seat checked of four UGA baseball tickets as an attempt to encourage everyone to just get their seat checked. By the end of the event, nearly 40 carseats were checked and 15 seats were given out. Once the event ended, we packed up all of the supplies and moved them back into the office before leaving for the weekend.

Summary/Reflection: This week was filled with pure event implementation, and with that came communication and planning. Starting off Tuesday, the day involved planning and communication ahead of the Teddy Bear Clinic event, engaging and communicating with partners on the Regional Trauma Advisory Committee, and providing CPR instruction that housed delivering education and developing messages. Tuesday was full and touched on each competency I discussed, merging future intervention delivery coordination, engagement with relevant partners, and delivering interventions of health promotion and education. I really enjoyed Tuesday, as doing such a variety of things keeps the day interesting. From this, it helped me understand that convening with partners doesn’t need to be that momentous of a moment, but can just be a group of new and past partners discussing what they’ve seen in the field, how they’ve been able to improve, providing suggestions and future aid. Seeing friendships evolve from partnerships is encouraging, proving that everyone is really in it for the same goal of improving a given population’s health or care. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday all met similar competencies as each day focused on health education delivery. Instructing second graders on handwashing and the spread of germs, fourth graders on lung health and longevity, and pre-k students on fruits and vegetables all held a conducive learning environment and employed a variety of instructional methods to improve information uptake at each age. With this, the instructional messages were developed for specificity and appropriateness to each age group and delivered with varying group sizes. I love getting to work with children, and this week continued to reinforce that education must be tailored to specific ages. For example, the handwashing lesson would’ve been redundant to fourth graders and boring to the pre-k children. It shows that each sub-population requires focus and forethought of what will keep them drawn it and interested in learning the material. On Saturday, the carseat check event included similar aspects of communication, education delivery, and coordination as the other events, but also held an evaluation aspect. With community-wide events, evaluation is crucial in assessing future need and outreach measures. Of course, as we were there, it felt as if we were seeing many individuals that needed aid or guidance in carseat installation or acquisition. By monitoring specific numbers, though, we can now assign a numerical value to the event, which can be used now as an impact measure, but also in the future for comparison. From this, I understand that monitoring isn’t just watching, it involves detail and provides data that is useful across time.

.

Daily Tasks: 3/24-3/26

3/24: Today, AD, HB, and I spent the day at Commerce High School. TM organized our attendance and attended for the first session, which was for the high school’s Career Day. With this, groups of seniors rotated around the school to our room and to others, including but not limited to HVAC, cooking, plumbing, and cosmetology. In our room, we had the 16 CPR mannequins set out and 6 AED machines placed throughout the mannequins. For each group, we introduced ourselves, with AD and HB explaining their previous roles as nurses and now community educator nurses. Then, we played an inspirational video that is designed to make knowing CPR empowering- with its capability to save a life. After this video and explaining hands-only versus CPR with breaths, we invited the seniors down to the mannequins. We played the song “Lil Boo Thang” which matches the BPM of CPR, and clapped as the kids attempted to perform CPR for two minutes. Once the two minutes was over, we used one of the AED machines as an example to show how they work, how to place adults versus pediatric pads, and what to listen for. They then broke into groups and were able to open/use the AED machines themselves on their mannequins. Lastly, we left space for each group to ask questions and gave them “homework” to know where each of the AEDs were placed in the school. We had seven different groups of 15-20 students coming in each group, all with different questions. It was really awesome to see so many overwhelmed high school seniors be interested in understanding and learning CPR. I even got to talk to a few that are committed to UGA. Once we packed up the mannequins, hand outs, and AED machines, it was time to head back to Athens.

3/25: I started my early morning at Better Communities Collaborative, a company HB and I have done CPR and STB certification with in the past. Here, HB assembled a group to perform biometric screenings on 12 employees. I was able to assist in a similar screening arrangement at Oconee State Bank about a month ago, where we had a group doing blood draws, someone doing height/weight/waist measurement, someone doing blood pressure, and two people doing health consultations. We followed the same flow as last time, with an employee walking in, doing paperwork for the blood draw, then getting their blood drawn. Then, they came to me. I walked them through the more lengthy paperwork required for our team and for the health counseling. Then, I passed them along to SR who was doing the BMI calculation, who then passed them to blood pressure readings and then the counseling room. I found out this time that the company’s HR personnel are able to put a health concern into a formal addressment in the screening. For this company, the concern was heart health due to demographics. So on top of the paperwork we need as a formality, each employee filled out a lengthy heart health risk assessment paper, so the counseling could focus on that for each individual. Once each employee went through, we packed up all of our monitors and informational sheets and headed back into the office. At the office, I first assisted AD in cleaning and organizing the office with items used during Saturday’s events. We selected the carseat check raffle winner and called her. Then, we got together all of the important, data driven paperwork. We needed this to then input carseat checks into the Child Passenger Safety board dataset. With this, we have to go through all 50 boxes seen/answered on the sheet by the given technician, put in the technician’s information, and all of the information as seen on the boxes. This is incredibly specific data, and is used to highlight the safety and need of the community, what they received, and who helped them. This information also shows the community’s need, whether that seems to be more education, but also if a booster, harness, or newborn seat is in need. Once we finished submitting 12 of the checks performed, we decided to head home for the day!

3/26: Today, AD and I started out our day at the YMCA for the SafeKids elementary school fieldtrip. Today was kindergarten, so we used the fruits and vegetables lesson we’ve done before with proteins, grains, and dairy added. I haven’t done this more extensive lesson, only doing the fruits and vegetables lesson with pre-k. We had three groups of about 20 children. As the children walked in, we asked them to sit in rows facing us. We went over the MyPlate layout, with half of the plate being fruits and vegetables, and dairy needing to be a glass of milk or a, with the other half being split for protein and whole grains. All of the fake fruit, vegetable, protein, grains and dairy options were grouped and set onto the table.  After explaining an elementary version of why we need each group. Then, we would count out five children. The first child got to select a fruit to add to the plate, the second got to select a vegetable, the third got to select a protein, the fourth got to select a grain, and the fifth got to choose between milk, string, or cheddar cheese to add to the meal. We worked through this exact same process for each group until it was time to pack up. After this I headed back to the office. We sorted through her email, and planned a very last minute handwashing lesson at Oconee County Primary School next week. I also went ahead and completed the volunteer review that the Oconee County High School Beta Club members sent out regarding their help at last week’s event. Then, I assisted AD in getting more carseat checks entered before it was time to head home!

3/27: Today was a new lesson at the YMCA for 1st graders. AD and I arrived and set up for the lesson about sugar content. I have never done this lesson before, so I was excited to see it. We placed out nine drinks, placing them in this order: water, flavored sparkling water, a mini Coke, vitamin water, gatorade, orange juice, sweet tea, a 16 oz Coke, and Nesquik chocolate milk. Behind the bottles, we have pre-made jars with sugar in them, showing how much sugar is put into the drink. On the table, we also had two small yogurt containers of different brands, one having 33g of sugar and the other having 7g. We had four groups of about 20 children. As each group entered, they sat on the floor in front of us and the table. AD explained to them what a nutrition label is and how marketing is not always truthful, that the front of the bottle may look/seem healthy, but it’s not. Then, we worked through the nine drinks of increasing sugar, allowing the children to look at the nutrition label for each drink and announce the amount of sugar in grams. Then, we would show the jar of how much sugar is actually in it. I was shocked how much the children enjoyed this and we’re so unaware of sugar contents. It seemed like even the teachers learned something. After the fourth group came in, we packed the supplies up and I headed home for the day.

Summary/Reflection: This week was filled with communication through health education, while also including data interpretation (evaluation) and establishing future education initiatives (planning). I was able to help educate people of all ages including middle-aged adults, high school seniors, first graders, and kindergarteners. I love being out in the community, talking to others about their health. Through this, I learned that education is never ending, so the initiatives from community health workers shouldn’t be either. This matters as I grow in my career of nursing, acknowledging that no matter what floor/population I serve, they all need the education/instructional aspect. It also makes me recognize my privilege to be educated on health issues as a young adult, seeing how many adults are unsure on how to manage their health. I’ve largely seen that it’s not because they don’t care, they genuinely do not know how to improve their health. Going forward, I need to remain devoted to health education. It is so important at each stage of life, from children to elderly. For me, I’m most interested in serving those two groups, children and elderly. Both of these are automatically vulnerable populations, needing tailored and specific interventions to improve their health. This incorporates the aspects of the communication competencies/sub-competencies that I mentioned for this week, segmenting the audience, identifying characteristics, tailoring communications, and then actually delivering presentations. Outside of education this week, I aided in a fast-paced planning effort. From the last time AD and I went to Oconee County Primary, they emailed us that the second graders loved the lesson so much that the first graders now want to do it. So, in talking with the school’s counselor and nurse, we moved around some of AD’s Monday tasks to fit in another day for education. Hearing this positive review helped us assess the effectiveness and uptake of the information, and with planning another intervention for a younger group, we adapted to the population. Through this, I recognize how easy it can be to plan an intervention. I also was able to see that we actually did make an impact, which is awesome. This encourages me as I go forward in my health promotion career, knowing that intervention can be simplified and can be adjusted for another population. Going forward, I need to further recognize that health education doesn’t always have to be difficult in planning or executing, and can be as simple as planning a day and moving around a meeting. Lastly, I was able to also look and interpret data this week. From the carseat check event, the data is not necessarily extensive, but is enough to evaluate impact compared to other years. Additionally, the data is specific and helps us assess further car seat preparation efforts. This matters for just this, leading to stronger planning efforts and more positive outcomes.

.

Daily Tasks: 3/30-4/3

3/30: This morning started early with the school day at Oconee County Primary School. Just like a few weeks ago, we had the same lesson on handwashing. This time, though, we taught the first graders. With this being planned last Thursday, the schedule and rotation of students had to be condensed to fit AD’s schedule. So, we had only three separate groups, but each group had two classes (about 40 children each). Just like last time, we talked about germs being infectious through the eyes, nose, and mouth, with different examples of transmission. We showed them the spread of germs through the six-foot long rope and the spray bottle with colored water and clean paper. Then, we high fived and shook their heads with the “fake germ” lotion, showing them how it spread under the “special” LED light. Then, we showed them how to scrub their hands correctly. Once they all washed their hands, we checked them under the same light to see if they got all of the “fake germs” off. Just like last time, the kids seemed to enjoy the lesson. Once this was over, I headed back over to the office. I had some paperwork to finish up. Once I finished this, I headed out of the office for the day.

3/31: Today, I started the morning with TM. We headed over to the MSB to set up the conference room with tablecloths and beverages. Then, we headed over to the main lobby to wait for Jefferson High School students to arrive. Today, we were giving the students a tour of a few parts of the hospital. TM and I split the 19 students, with her staying with 10 and me staying with 9. My group went through the emergency department first, seeing the layout of the area and seeing the details of a trauma room. They were able to see the miniature blood bank, LUCAS (automatic CPR) machine, and hear from a nurse and patient care tech on what they do for each patient. Then, we headed to radiology. Here, they were able to see the CT machine, the x-ray, and hear about the MRI machine. They learned from the department supervisor and a radiology tech about the extensiveness of each machine, how they work, and how important they are. We had a 15 minute break for them to sit and use the bathroom, as each department tour was 30 minutes. We all headed to the basement for the next two tours. First, my group toured the clinical pharmacy. Here, they were able to see the detailed technology behind processes, organizing, and retrieving medications for inpatient use. They saw where radioactive medication was handled, such as chemotherapy. The students were able to learn about how oral/pill medications are batched to be distributed through the hospital, how the medications are transported in seconds, and how nurses process/scan the medications. Once this was finished, we headed over to the laboratory. Here, the students were able to see the pathology area, the processing area, the microbiology lab, and the blood bank. In the pathology area, the students were able to see and touch a colon and a uterus, both recently extracted from a patient. They also were able to see histology slides in the pathology area and a blood agar strep test in the microbiology lab. Once we completed the tour, we headed over to the MSB room that TM and I set up this morning. Lunch had been delivered, so the students all ate before the CEO came in to speak. He spoke about Piedmont’s outreach in Northeast GA, how many jobs it supplies, college involvement, and statistics of inpatient admissions/births/lives saved. He left space for questions, which students really seemed to take advantage of. Once all questions were answered, TM showed the students back out to the bus as I cleaned up the room. Once everything was packed up into the wagon, I brought it back over to the office where TM and I unloaded everything. Once this was finished, it was time to head home for the day.

4/1: Today was an amazing experience. I was able to attend and help with the Lutzie 43 Foundation’s Safe Driving Summit at North Oconee Highschool. The Foundation was created in Philip Lutzenkirchen’s honor. Philip was an Auburn football player from Marietta, who was in a distracted driving-caused car wreck that ended his life when he was 23. In his honor, his family created the Foundation/Summit to prevent distracted driving deaths. Starting off the day in the auditorium, all students were able to watch a video honoring Philip and hear from his father and sister. In his father’s speech, he mentioned the terms of the accident that led to his son’s death, along with two others in the vehicle. Hearing him talk about how he wishes the Foundation wasn’t ever necessary, repeating “my son is dead,” was striking. In instilled reason in a population of teenagers that often feel invincible in their freedom. Once this introduction was over, the sophomores were split into four groups and the other students were dismissed to class. The Summit focuses on sophomores, as that grade includes 15/16 year old new, inexperienced drivers. Each group broke out into a different seminar. One group went outside to the 18-wheeler/driving simulator, another went to the trauma reenactment, another went to the rehabilitation seminar, and another went to the speeding/distraction lecture. In the 18-wheeler and driving simulator, students were able to get into the driver’s seat of an 18-wheeler and see the blind spots of the vehicle. With an instructor, they learned about the correct way to move around a vehicle like this in order to keep themselves and the other driver safe. In the driving simulator, each student had three screens in front of them, perfectly mirroring the blind spots and view of a driver. They had a steering wheel, gas, and brake. This instructor showed three different scenarios, one of which proved that we often don’t notice all of the vehicles around us, one showing how easy it is to wreck with a two-second distraction, and another showing how to react to another vehicle going towards oncoming traffic. For the trauma reenactment, Piedmont and Wellstar partnered to create an emergency room environment to see what exactly occurs when a devastating wreck occurs. For this, we had Piedmont emergency department staff become actors. A nurse acted as the victim, with dramatic makeup done to really appear injured. There was also an actual emergency doctor, PA, nurse, and a respiratory therapist. Each individual acted how they would in an actual trauma. For the student’s, a screen showed a captioned phone call to police about a wreck, then they heard sirens, followed by a call received by the hospital from EMTs regarding the incoming patient. EMTs entered the space, announcing the patient’s status and what occurred in the field. Then, staff transferred the patient to the bed and performed faux trauma protocol. As they did this, either the doctor or PA stepped to the side to explain the complex medical jargon and why it was happening to the students. Once it was over, there was time for questions. I was really glad to see that so many students had questions, whether it be about how seatbelts can improve outcomes, why certain medical responses were needed, or how trauma could be lessened. In the rehabilitation seminar, a professional psychologist explained the brain in the context of safe driving and traumatic outcomes. This included addiction to phones and addiction to mind altering substances that make driving safe nearly impossible. She also reviewed how traumatic accidents can impair the mind and require cognitive (along with physical) rehabilitation. In the speeding and distraction lecture, police officers went over the statistics, numbers, and legality of driving distracted. They made a very strong point. If someone is going 70 mph, they go 102 feet per second. So, if someone looks away for three seconds to answer a phone call, their car is able to travel 306 feet. In that time a car crash is possible if someone brakes, swerves, or makes a sudden movement. The time also has to be factored in to actually physically brake the car, meaning if something occurs while distracted, it’s very difficult to make a quick, smart driving decision in that moment. Once students rotated through each seminar, they went back to the auditorium for closing remarks from the Foundation. While they did that, I assisted the team in closing down the fake trauma room and packing up that equipment. Then, we headed home for the day.

4/3: Today, AD and I started our day with ACC Fire at Barnett Shoals Elementary’s Lunch on the Lawn. The day was for each grade level, and all students were able to come out onto the lawn and eat lunch with their parents. We were positioned so that both parents and students could see us, and had items relevant to carseat safety. So we had our demonstration seat/doll, carseat limbo, informational posters/sheets on carseat safety, and we brought 12 booster seats to give out for free. ACC Fire brought sheets that I also helped unpack, mostly relevant to fire safety measures in the home. As the first group of students came out, we didn’t get much traction. So, we moved the carseat limbo into the middle of the field. Students naturally began going under it, and parents watched, seeing the label that states “those under 4’9 must be in a car or booster seat.” Concerned parents/guardians then came up to us, looking for information or a carseat. By the end of the day, we gave out all 12 booster seats and provided instruction on how to install the seat and safely put their child in it. After all the children had lunch, we closed down the tables and diagrams and loaded everything into ACC Fire’s trailer to go back to the office!

Summary/Reflection: This past week was a mixture of implementation, advocacy, and communication, all of which was accomplished in the field. Monday really focused on the implementation and communication aspects. In our handwashing education, we delivered health education/promotion, monitoring the students’ learning, and delivered the tailored messages in both small and large groups. Here, I recognized again how important it is to tailor messages for the appropriate audience. Using real life examples for a first grader allowed us to actually connect with them and improve their educational adherence. This matters as I grow into my career that is shaped by health education, knowing that I will be able to reuse these tactics. We had similar competencies met in a more broad education measure on Friday at Barnett Shoals. There, we provided health education and promotion, educating parents and children on safety in a car, while promoting the use of carseats. We educated both adults and children, which again focuses on how crucial it is to tailor messages. Messages should be targeted, not only when speaking with children, but also with adults of varying health literacy. In this, we employed numerous instructional methodologies, having written education and physical visualization of how carseats should be used and what can happen when not worn. This matters as a lot of our education has been targeted towards children. To effectively improve children’s outcomes, though, parents and guardians must also understand the education we’re providing. With this, I’ve learned the importance and willingness of parents to accept education and aid when we reach out. This matters as it instills optimism in health initiatives going forward, while also showing me how to meet parents/guardians where they’re at, in both resources and literacy level. On Tuesday, I assisted in a tour of the hospital, showing healthcare pathway students different parts of the hospital. This was largely communication, determining factors that affect beneficial communication, developing the messages, and delivering the messages. In talking to the students, I was able to recognize how simple conversations can improve people’s view on healthcare. This matters for this group, as they aspire to become physicians, nurses, techs, etc., and need positive encouragement to grow in their dreams. This matters for the population, because having educational conversations about institutions can eliminate fear of hospitals and healthcare settings. Going forward, I plan to use this realization in broader settings, hoping to improve community health outcomes through positive healthcare setting speech. On Thursday, I was able to assist in Piedmont’s presence and aid at the Lutzie 43’s Safe Driving Summit. As a non-profit, Piedmont was able to act as a partner to the foundation, allowing us to help them achieve their goal of promoting safe driving habits. This was largely implementation and advocacy. We advocated for safe driving by becoming allies with the foundation and thus developing persuasive messages for their goal. This leads to implementation, where we created an environment conducive to learning and employed an interesting methodology to increase educational adherence. I never imagined seeing a methodology as interesting as a trauma room reenactment. Truly, I cannot express how amazing the Safe Driving Summit was. It seemed to make an impact on the teens, but it definitely made an impact on me. Here, I learned the extreme that health education can go to. It opened my eyes to the broad scope of instruction to be used in health promotion measures, which is great to acknowledge as I think through and of future impacts. Overall, it was a wonderful, busy week.

.

Daily Tasks: 4/6-4/9

4/6: Today was an in-office work day. I met AD at the office to kick off the week. First, we went through her emails and planned our week. We planned to input carseat data today, make a powerpoint for an upcoming event tomorrow, and get other things done on Wednesday, leaving me with unfinished tasks on Thursday. After we checked and responded to her emails, we called one of the people who had sent an email. They wanted to schedule a carseat check appointment, as they were in the hospital soon to be discharged. AD asked the typical questions, such as what seat they have, what car(s) they have, and if they have the carseat manual. Once we got this settled for tomorrow, we called someone who left a message. It was a lady, calling about her young grandson with autism who keeps escaping his harness seat while the car is in motion. AD instructed her that if he is able to escape his current seat, he will likely be able to escape any seat. However, there are third-party locks that can be purchased from popular retailers to secure the harness. We decided to go ahead and schedule the carseat appointment for Wednesday, just so we can see how he is escaping the seat and therefore figure out the best place/way to secure the lock. Once we finished this phone call, we immediately started inputting carseat data. I’ve discussed this prior, the process is very tedious. We have to put in information about the car, and the child or children. It is a 50 question analysis of the seat and child, all of which we have to replicate from the paper form into the online form. We did a number of these before it was time for me to head out for the day.

4/7: Today, AD and I were determined to finish all of the carseat data entries. Once she got in the office, we immediately started entering them. As I’ve mentioned, the process itself is lengthy. The problem we kept having though, is the carseat technician’s (CPST) notes not making sense. For example, in the “on arrival” section, the CPST would mark the carseat as correctly installed, being secured by seatbelt, tether, and lower anchors. Then, in the “on departure” section, they would change it to lower anchors and/or tether, indicating that clearly the way they arrived was incorrect and needed to be changed. This makes AD and I have to look through and think logically about a carseat check we weren’t watching. Still, we are supposed to input the data as seen on the sheet, so we have to markup the sheet and decipher the actual findings and what is correct. This isn’t an insult to the CPSTs, sometimes things get busy and convoluted, it just makes the data entry process more lengthy for us. Still, after hours of inputting the data, getting distracted by incoming phone calls/emails, and having lunch- we still didn’t finish all of the data entries. Eventually, we both had to head home.

4/8: I started out the morning at my desk, checking my Piedmont email while waiting for AD to come in. I talked with KC, and she asked me to go through her free/low-cost resource list that she hands out in order to make sure the information is up to date and accurate. She said I could work on this whenever I got some down time.  Soon after, AD came in and we got straight to work. The car seat appointment we scheduled for Today on Monday was cancelled due to a timing conflict. So, we had all day to dedicate to our data entries. After a few hours, we got them all entered. By this time, TG came into the office and we caught up with her and talked about the carseat findings. We looked at the car seat specific data, and Safe Kids Athens data to make a powerpoint that AD needs to create for an upcoming event. In this powerpoint, we put images of her fire safety education, car seat checks, super sitters class, water safety, and home safety. We were looking at data to put in specific numbers to show how Safe Kids’ reach and impact. Once we finished up this powerpoint, I asked AD for some work to do tomorrow and suggested I go through her resource list as well. Tomorrow, I will be one of two people in the office so I know I need something to work on with most of everyone gone. After settling this, I headed home!

4/9: This morning, I woke up not feeling well. I headed to urgent care and was diagnosed with a sinus infection and ear infection. Luckily, I wasn’t missing out on much in the office with most people out today. I messaged KC and TG letting them know I was going to urgent care, and TG said I was more than welcome to work through those resource lists at home. So, that’s what I did today. I went through 25 local and regional resources for KC. I looked at the addresses and phone numbers, along with the description for each resource. I did the same process for AD’s 45 resources, making sure they’re up to date in hours and contact information. Once I finished this, I signed out for the day.

Summary/Reflection: This past week was slow, but still purposeful. It was Athens-Clarke County and Oconee County’s spring break, so many ladies were out of the office with their children. This kept me in the office, where of course there is always work to be done. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were all largely dedicated to getting carseat data reviewed and uploaded. We had a build up of sheets from the carseat check event a few weeks ago, and carseat check appointments at the hospital. Other people in the office do carseat checks, but since it’s all relevant to Safe Kids- it’s AD’s job to input everyone’s data. We had to prepare the data, analyze it as we entered it, and interpret it, covering the evaluation and research competencies I wrote. Through doing this, I learned the depth and difficulty that comes with larger, more numerous analyses. It can almost feel consuming when this is almost put off to all be done at once. Going forward, in whatever direction of nursing I enter, either community or bedside, I know that entering data cannot be put off. In smaller proportions this week, I met the planning and advocacy competencies. On Wednesday, I assisted AD in creating a powerpoint in preparation for an upcoming event that highlights all of the work that Safe Kids Athens does. This matters because designing a communicative tool is important in conveying the desired message. For this, the message is to show Safe Kids and create understanding and support for Safe Kids among the trauma committee. In terms of advocacy, on Thursday, I was able to help ensure the accuracy of the resource sheets that our team provides to underserved individuals of the community. These resource sheets have names of the organizations with short descriptions, and emails, phone numbers, and addresses if applicable. This matters because keeping information up-to-date is impactful to the community members, making sure they aren’t wasting time in meeting their needs. This was definitely a more calm week than others, yet I’m grateful for what I was able to learn and looking forward to next week!

Daily Tasks: 4/13-4/17

4/13: Today, I had a shorter day in the office, making up time that I spent out while sick last week. I started the morning off with HB. She was out of the office last week, so after catching up, we went over some plans for the week. Tomorrow, we will be participating in a health fair at the Caterpillar office in Bogart. So far, we don’t have many details and don’t know what to expect. Still, we know we have a table and will be performing blood pressure checks, and are sure more details will come before tomorrow morning. On Wednesday, we will be assisting in Empower’s Mock Disaster Day in Jefferson. We have information for this, and know that we will use our healthcare knowledge to facilitate the day, not having to bring anything of our own. The remainder of the day, we worked on the computer, printing extra materials for upcoming weeks, and ran errands around campus. For the first time, I was able to see how HB processes payments for her CPR/STB certification classes. It’s a more strenuous process than I expected. Payments from companies must be sent to Piedmont Atlanta, then have to be processed there. So, when payments come to HB, she makes a copy for her records, and has to take the actual check to the CEO’s suite. I had never been to this part of the hospital, so it was exciting to see. We talked with the CEO’s assistant for a little bit before heading back to our office. Once we got back, we noticed an email came in with more details for tomorrow. The day was wrapping up, so we planned to pack everything, and what to pack, in the morning before heading to the health fair. Then, I headed home.

4/14: I started out the day with HB in the office, preparing materials for today’s health fair. We had most of the sheets we needed from the last health fair, but needed to make some additional prints and copies. Once I gathered the prints, folded our printed pamphlets on nutritional diets, and stacked these up, I had to go to the other building to grab stand-up holders for all of our papers. I put these into the wagon, and then grabbed Piedmont Athens “swag,” which was bandaid packs and hand sanitizer. HB grabbed the blood pressure machines and additional cuffs. We also brought along a huge poster that shows the signs of strokes and heart attacks. I’ve never seen it until today, but it is a really great illustration showing the differences between symptoms while also highlighting them. We packed this into the car and headed to Caterpillar. Once we got through security, we found where all of the vendors were set up. Our table was combined with Piedmont’s Community Care Clinic. We all worked together to talk to the employees, give out information, and check blood pressures. Luckily, most individuals had normal to elevated blood pressure, of which required lifestyle and diet counseling. However, a few individuals had high blood pressure, so we consulted with the Community Care Clinic personnel to get them an appointment with a physician. In total, we talked to 70 individuals and read 55 individuals’ blood pressures. That was specifically one of my tasks outside of talking to individuals, taking down numbers of conversations and blood pressure readings. I was also able to talk about Piedmont’s resources, such as the “Courage to Quit” nicotine cessation program. Additionally, I largely talked about sodium intake and dietary choices to help support a healthy blood pressure. Once the fair came to an end, we left some materials for Caterpillar to hold on their campus for future needs. We packed up everything else and headed home!

 4/15: Today, HB and I assisted in Empower College & Career Center’s Mock Disaster Day. At the school, they have pathways for high school students, with the healthcare science pathway being the focus of today’s event. The school and other students (with different pathways) put on an entire production. The mock disaster was a chicken plant explosion, and students had makeup for their appropriate, fake injury. The healthcare science classroom(s) had a total of seven beds. In increments within class periods, there were six fake patients entering with EMS student actors within a 15-minute timeframe. In this, the healthcare students had to triage the patient and decide on the correct next steps based on the patient’s injuries. This could be bloodwork, screening measures, starting an IV, or ordering a medication. Depending on the step they had to take, they had to either use a fake blood draw tool or decide medication dosage. The point of the drill is to show the students how healthcare is handled in a real-life simulation, applying the tasks they have learned individually into a potential future scenario as they further their careers. HB and I were there to facilitate the process for the students. As patients came in, we instilled the importance of listening for vitals quickly and understanding what occurred in the field in order to triage. We followed them around as they treated patients, helping them work through the best way to help the patient. Outside of Piedmont assisting, Oconee EMTs and a life flight crew came to support the day. In an off-period, all students and assistants were able to see the helicopter for life flights and understand the mechanisms within the helicopter and how patients enter/exit the aircraft. Once we finished up assisting the last group of students, we headed back to Athens.

4/16: Today started off as most other Thursdays, at the Athens YMCA. Here, AD and I had a lesson to teach to Timothy Road Elementary’s kindergarteners on nutrition. We had four groups of 20 students, with each class following the same process. For kindergarten students, we always talk about carseat usage. At this age, we’ve found that children are quick to announce if they are or are not in a car or booster seat. After AD briefly talked about this and we gave out her contact information to teachers, we started the lesson. We start off by talking about the food groups: fruits, vegetables, protein, grains, and dairy. Then, within each class we segmented the children into groups of five. We allowed them to come up to the table and pick a toy food item to make a (food group) portioned plate. We showed the class each plate as their peers made them, and went over how the foods support a healthy body. Once we finished with all four groups of students, we packed up our posters and toy food items. I headed back to the office for a quick celebratory lunch for TG’s birthday. I helped the team set up, then was able to enjoy lunch with them. We talked about our week and upcoming week before cleaning up the party. Once this was finished, we all headed home!

4/17: I started today off at the Athens Country Club. I was asked by TG and another person I’ve volunteered for in years prior to help with the adult volunteer luncheon. At Piedmont, the adult volunteers are largely older, retired adults, all of which dedicate a plethora of time to the hospital. They assist all over the hospital, many of them volunteering for over 10 years. Each year, TG and the other individual organize a nice lunch for them to understand how appreciated they are. I assisted with the set-up check-in process. In setting up, I folded the itinerary pamphlets, set up the tables, and organized the check-in space. As attendees walked in, I checked their name off, handed them their dietary restriction card (if applicable), and gave them their gift. Their gift was a medium-sized picnic cooler, which was really nice. Once I checked everyone in, I was able to set in on the program. While this occurred, I took pictures for TG of the speakers and attendees. Once the luncheon was over, I was able to head home.

Summary/Reflection: This past week a combination of planning, implementation, and communication with a little management too. Starting off on Monday, I was able to learn those management(/leadership) aspects that the team deals with weekly. This is less community-based, so I had not seen it until it was another slow week. In dealing with incoming payments, I was able to learn about how our department is funded. I recognize this as common in community education spaces, with the community often needing resources without being able to compensate financially. Of course, this is why we exist. Still, I was able to learn more internal information and recognize that payment for our few charged services are not proportionally transactional. I think this is why our services are often used, as they are discounted to improve upkeep. Going forward, I will continue to appreciate the services of community educators in understanding that their dedication is the motivation of their careers. Tuesday and Thursday both naturally incorporated planning, communication, and planning. For the Caterpillar Health Fair, we planned our portion, materials, and intended takeaways fairly last minute. We knew we wanted to offer free blood pressure checks, but the potential conversations we would have were unknown. This forced us to be prepared with information on dangers of blood pressure, sodium intake, nutrition, and how to improve blood pressure. Not only did we develop materials for the event, we then collected baseline data to further guide our discussions with each employee. If their blood pressure was normal, we encouraged them to continue doing what they are doing. If their numbers were off, we then introduced different topics that could cause their numbers and discussed their lifestyle. This is important because real life isn’t always planned. In the community field, not all conversations can be predicted. Therefore, bringing extra information is crucial to navigate whatever conversation is started. I really enjoyed this aspect as well. The conversations I had were all different, but all proved that the population was interested in learning how to improve their health. Thursday was a more direct health education delivery, with less planning. We’ve done the nutrition lesson for kindergarteners a plethora of times.​​ Though this is much more structured, it’s still important because each topic is crucial to improving the ages’ health. For children, they have less knowledge and therefore are less likely to contribute to a conversation- making it an awesome age to just provide education to. This is important because starting nutrition acknowledgment young is crucial to their health and development in the years to come. Looking back on Wednesday, it emphasized communication and public speaking skills. For the Mock Disaster Day, we had to facilitate the delivery of health services from the students, helping them grow in their health-based careers. It was a really interesting way of teaching, but seemed to really improve the students’ skills and quick-thinking. This matters as they grow and become health advocates themselves, acting as a stepping stone to further their understandings in clinical care. On Friday, it again focused on communication, but not directly to improve community health. Instead, we celebrated those that improve Piedmont’s care delivery and patient experience. It was a wonderful week and I can’t believe it’s almost over.

.

Daily Tasks: 4/21-4/24

4/21: I started off today in the office, printing out materials and grabbing supplies for the class at the YMCA. I headed over to the YMCA and met AD there. Today, we had a lesson for kindergarteners at Whit Davis Elementary. The lesson was nutrition, which we adjusted for each of the three groups. We noticed our standard lesson asking about various fruits and vegetables’ color, category, and if they liked it or not was not suitable for the hyper first group. Thus, we adjusted and made it more direct. We asked children from this group to make a plate mimicking what they ate for dinner last night, using whatever model/toy food we had. Then, we reviewed the plate and added things to make it healthier. For example, a child made a plate with a hamburger and macaroni. So, we added broccoli and watermelon. We went over how this was healthy, and then what color each item was. The second and third groups’ lessons were more standard and similar to our typical instruction. Once we finished these classes, we each headed back to the office. Here, I met the teams’ new, in-house marketing assistant. I was able to chat with her before AD and I had a carseat appointment. The appointment was for a two-year-old who needed to move past his infant seat. I watched as AD did the in-office instruction and best practice explanation, and helped keep the child contained. I really enjoyed this appointment, as it felt like the mother was really invested in her son’s wellbeing. She also has a seven-year-old that wasn’t present, but admitting that with his weight, she thought he did not have to be in a seat. After guessing his height to be 52 inches, AD instructed that he likely needed a booster. We then went over the intention of the booster and what can happen without one in the case of the wreck. Usually the fear of potential neck and organ trauma helps parents understand this importance. So, we ultimately gave the mother a booster with an attachable high back and a convertible seat. We followed her to her car and AD assisted her in installing the more complicated rear-facing convertible seat, and I assisted her in installing the booster base. We finished this up, giving out a pamphlet on state laws versus best practice and heading back into the office. We then had to fill out carseat check/giveaway sheets to later input this data. This sheet is the same we always use, assessing the premise of how they arrived, information on the child’s size, and how the seat was changed/updated on departure. After we filled this out for the convertible and booster seat, we headed to lunch. Once we returned back to the office, I headed home for the day.

4/22: Today was an in-office work day. I started my day off with a phone call from AD that she was unable to come in, though we previously planned on adding data to a powerpoint of hers for an upcoming event. So, I no longer had that on my list. However, I checked in with HB as I arrived and helped her grab laboratory data for health coaching. For this, employees of a company got a panel of bloodwork done, that HB will review in order to tailor coaching for the employees. This is full circle, as this is what I helped her work on during my first week in the office. We looked at these numbers for a while, but noted the cholesterol, glucose, weight, blood pressure, and BMI for each individual, looking for potential health patterns among the employees. Once TG arrived, she printed flyers for the upcoming blood drive on May 8th, and asked me to go through the hospital and hang them up. Just like last time, I used tape to hang up the flyers in each elevator, including both staff and patient elevators. I took a few extra by the gift shop and the main desks. I walked back over to the office to join a virtual meeting that had both TG, HB, and AD included. It was a hypertension roundtable meeting, with Piedmont Community staff from all over the state. The intention of the meeting was to discuss what departments are noticing success in, barriers, and opinions for improvement in terms of hypertension outreach and assessment. The meeting host also highlighted new community education resources that resulted from what was discussed in the first meeting. Everyone discussed how each Piedmont could do something on the same day in their respective communities, specifically thinking of including local barber shops to reach older African-American men. The date mentioned unfortunately didn’t work for most of the departments, but the idea was incredible. We plan to branch off of this. Even if not in a barber shop, we have pre-established connections with upcoming community events and churches that would allow us to reach their Black communities. Once we finished this meeting, HB, TG, and I discussed our opinions on the new resources shown and what we’ve noticed could work or change for the better. I checked in with KC, who had a small task for me to do. She goes to Our Daily Bread weekly, and houses information on individuals who return weekly. This information is stored in file folders, but as individuals stop coming, she eventually shreds their personal file. After she removed all of the personal papers, she wanted me to remove the name label on each folder and attach an empty label to reuse the folders. I worked through all of the almost 150 folders, putting a fresh name tag so that she can use the folders on new people as they go in to get a fresh meal. Once I finished this, I headed home!

4/23: Today, my morning started out at the YMCA. AD and I met there, and prepared to give our nutrition lesson to pre-k students. Just like Tuesday, we had the same base lesson. However, after having to switch up the lesson on Tuesday, we decided to try a different approach with this group. I suggested that we emphasize on what they know, such as letters and colors. AD pulled out a book that we hadn’t used this semester, which organizes fruits and vegetables in alphabetic order. So for each group today, we went through the alphabet of fruits and vegetables, then assessed color. As always, AD had her initial discussion with the children and teachers about carseat safety. We actually had a teacher step aside and inquire about a carseat check for her young child, which is always exciting to see a proactive parent. Once we finished the three groups of 20 children, we cleaned up and headed back to the office. I assisted AD in filling out and turning in the community PRN’s timesheets, something I didn’t know she was tasked with. After this, the rest of the team came into the office and gave me some really meaningful gifts before my last day tomorrow. We then all headed over to get lunch together. After this, I packed up my very sweet gifts and cards and headed home.

4/24: I started today, my final day, heading to the basement of our office building. Here, AD holds all of the extra convertible seats, booster seats, bassinets, and helmets. She gets all of these through Safe Kids grants that go through CHOA (where the Georgia Safe Kids’ main office is). So, AD wanted the inventory information and numbers to relay back to them, to know if anymore are needed at this time and how many have been used since we received them. Once I documented this, I headed back upstairs. I checked in with HB and just chatted with her until AD came in. I gave AD the inventory information. I then went through all of my internship timesheets, making sure my hours were correctly documented and added. I scanned both AD and HB’s evaluation, then gave TG all of the final paperwork. Once she signed my last timesheet, the final evaluation, and the final signature page, I said my “see you laters.” I love this team so much, and was sad to head home for the last time.

Summary/Reflection: As every other week has been, the past week was wonderful. It’s almost full circle how my final week of interning felt just like my first few weeks. There was mostly implementation and communication, but also planning and advocacy. On both Tuesday and Thursday, I was able to do one of the things I’ve enjoyed most: health education with children. Coordinating and delivering these health education interventions have become weekly, and have largely taught me how to positively work with children. I knew from the beginning that I cared for and liked children, but through this, I’ve learned how to tailor discussions to their level and connect with them. I’ve also been able to learn to connect with parents. For example, in the carseat check on Tuesday, I was able to converse with the mother about her child. With this, I’ve also been able to learn an incredible amount about car safety for children. So much so, that AD trusted me to install and explain the booster seat installation. This is something I’m so grateful to have learned, as it’s important in my personal life and in my future in healthcare. With HB, going through the lab work data is practically identical to what I did on my first week with her. Now, though, I’m much more comfortable reviewing the data and interpreting it. Almost naturally, working in community education has actually educated me on issues within the community. This was prevalent in Wednesday’s hypertension roundtable meeting. A nationwide issue, one that even came up through my health promotion classwork, was heart health in Black men. So, getting to hear and be a part of a discussion in planning a statewide initiative on such a powerful issue was awesome. I’m so happy this is in the works, but so sad I won’t be a part of the team as it comes to fruition. 

I am so honored to have worked with such amazing, strong-willed, and passionate women. This semester has been an honor and privilege. I’ve learned so much about community work, healthcare, how to connect with various populations, and how I can make a difference. I’ve loved this semester and am so sad it’s over, but excited for the work the team will continue to do and what I’m capable to do with what I’ve learned from them.