What originally drew me to the National Health Corps was the community service aspect, but an unexpected benefit was the vast amount of training we receive on various topics in public health. As someone who enjoys learning and desires to stay up to date on current issues in healthcare, training has been one of the parts of my service term that I have enjoyed the most. During pre-service orientation, we learned about the neurobiology and presentation of trauma, striving for cultural humility, and motivational interviewing. This education laid the foundation for our service at our respective host sites and set us up for successful interactions and outcomes.
The door to the PAP office at Health Center 10.
Come in anytime!
Two ways I have further engaged with training during my service term are as a member of the training committee and through my member development plan (MDP). Training committee is responsible for bringing in speakers for our member training days on the first Friday of each month. We coordinate with trainers from local organizations and have so far received training on reproductive justice, medical-legal services for refugees/immigrants, and environmental justice to name a few examples. Along with our cohort debrief session afterwards, these experiences have profoundly deepened my appreciation for community learning and reflection because our discussion in brave, safe spaces allow for different perspectives to be shared. Additionally, NHC members create MDPs for ways in which they want to grow over their service term. I sought to learn more about trauma-informed service delivery, cultural responsibility, and the ethics of service. To do so, I have read books such as Black Man in a White Coat by Dr. Damon Tweedy, The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog by Dr. Bruce Perry, and Street-Level Bureaucracy by Michael Lipsky. My MDP allows me to create a personalized training plan for topics I am passionate about, and I am grateful for that aspect of my service term.
A stack of insulin shipments I have
to sort through and dispense to patients
I currently serve as a Patient Advocate in the PAP (Patient Assistance Programs) office at Health Center 10, and this is where the theoretical training I have received becomes practical. I see firsthand the consequences of food insecurity and poverty because I help mostly low-income, uninsured patients obtain medications to mitigate the physical effects of years of living with these public health issues. As a future physician, I hope to continue learning about ways in which I could be a better healthcare provider and advocate for those under my care.
It is imperative to engage in training so that we continue to grow in knowledge, compassion, and humility. Consequently, we can apply what we have learned to our interactions with the patients we serve, because I believe that is the entire point of training. We learn about social determinants of health, racism, systemic barriers, and other various injustices so that we can be more empathetic and understanding of those under our care. Additionally, training allows us to be more aware of our own privilege and implicit biases so that we can be humbler and more respectful. We have all heard of the iconic slogan: “Live. Laugh. Love.” I think we should add one more word to that- Learn.
