I've worked contingent/part-time hours in the patient transportation department for all 4 years of college. During this experience I gained a greater appreciation for the beauty and intricacies of healthcare. As a transporter, I was tasked with transferring patients on to their respective modes of transport (bed, wheelchair, stretcher), and taking them to their test or alternative destinations. Because of the nature of the job encompassing the entire hospital, I was able to see multiple health professions: physicians, nurses, nurse aides, dialysis techs, radiologic techs, respiratory therapists, and more. Seeing how a job like mine intermingles into the numerous professions before me and creates what we call the field of medicine was truly a rewarding experience.

In my time here I've held the roles of a patient transporter, trainer for new transporters, and dispatcher/shift lead.

Micah 6 is my longitudinal volunteer experience I have taken part in since August 2023. I've done several one time, or summer long volunteer opportunities that shows my dedication to service, but Micah 6 felt special. As a community garden, Micah 6 gives back to the local Pontiac community by producing year long produce and crops that they either donate directly or sell at an extremely discounted price at their local market. My job was to help maintain those new grounds, plant new produce, and anything else they'd need from me to help out. Master gardeners Joan & Nora, as well as long time volunteer Jim have really made me feel at home here, and I plan to continue serving this local community for as long as I'm here. 

As a member of the Honors College you are tasked with submitting a senior thesis that is then presented to your peers and faculty at the ICE Festival. I completed my project: 'Patient perspectives on approaches to spinal cord injury-related chronic pain management: A secondary qualitative analysis', with Dr. Edward Rohn. We came together biweekly as he answered my questions and guided me down my first true research experience coding, and eventually analyzing, raw interview data. At the ICE Festival I proudly presented my work and the findings I uncovered.

Peer Mentor

As a peer mentor I was able to work with a small group of students and help network them to each other as well as be a resource for them. During this time I was tutoring one of my mentees in her pre-calculus course, discussing my academic path with a fellow exercise science student mentee monthly, creating school year long goals with them, and checking in with them all monthly to ensure that they were hitting their targets.

Secretary on ECLIPSE Activities Board

As the secretary for ECLIPSE I helped lead events with other members of the ECLIPSE Activities Board. These included guest speakers, collaborative events, graduate student panels, skill building events, etc. At times we had upwards of 30 or more students present. I was in charge of keeping meeting notes for our biweekly meetings as well as being the author of our weekly emails informing members of club events, volunteer opportunities, and collaborations with other clubs on campus.

I was recommended by our former ECLIPSE director Kelli Dowd to take part in the RecWell's Healthy Stories Campaign. I completed an interview where they captured my 'wellbeing story' (linked here) where I talked about my motivations to live the best life that I am able to. I mentioned my values to stay physically healthy through sports, exercise, and being food conscious (with some apple pie exceptions); at the same time being vulnerable about my own mental health struggles and how I've worked through them. 

For one of my Exercise Science capstones I was able to assist one of my peers in collecting data for her research involving a knee crutch assistive device. I recruited, screened, and ran participants through different balance and mobility related trials under baseline, standard knee crutch, and modified knee crutch conditions. This gave me my first data collecting experience and contributed to my peer's first publication, and our final project of our major.

I was formerly a member of HOSA at Fraser High School. In the winter of 2023-2024, my old HOSA advisor reached out to my friends and I, asking if we were able to come back and assist in running the macomb county regional competition at our alma mater. I was able to give back to the high school population of schools across the county by spending the day volunteering my time: checking in, proctoring, and guiding students to their respective events.

At the IPE 3000 level, ECLIPSE members are put into randomized groups of students with varying future medical professions. The goal is to come together, create a hypothetical case report, and present how these professions would intermingle and provide comprehensive care to our hypothetical patient. I learned a lot from trying to create an accurate narrative that would meet the requirements laid out to us and would further educate/engage our audience. At the same time, I absorbed how the other groups tackled their projects and was fascinated by the reality that I will likely work with some of these scholars in the future.

In the summer after my junior year, I volunteered biweekly with Meals on Wheels where I delivered free lunches to my local community in Fraser, Michigan. It really opened my eyes to how varying living situations can be in housing so near my own. I would of had no idea of the struggles these individuals faced without this meals on wheels experience. Many of the recipients were elderly, lived at home alone, and at times struggled to even make it to the front door in a few minutes time. I took great joy in conversing with those that wanted to, as well as seeing the smiles on their face when 'young blood' was helping serve the community.

In the summer after my junior year, I volunteered on the rehabilitation floor of the hospital that I work for. There I saw a different side of the healthcare experience separated from the scope of a transporter. I utilized similar skill sets as I did in my paid position: helping transfer patients to wheelchairs and communicate to the rehabilitation staff that were scheduled to work with them. I grew a deeper understanding of all that went into rehabilitation care: speech, occupational, and physical therapists all worked in tandem to tackle the challenge of getting these patients ready to go home as soon as possible. I was shocked to hear that some of the patients had been there for months slowly regaining their ability to live and function. It was truly a rewarding experience to be able to work with these teams every Friday morning over the course of that summer. 

ECLIPSE put on an all day conference where myself and peers were walked through many different events that focused on strengthening our team building, leadership philosophies, as well as better understanding our personal values and drives. This experience was topped off by a School of Health Sciences panel involving experts in fields related to the different disciplines that make up the SHS. This experience made me a better leader and gave me greater insight into the what the world of medicine has to offer me.

I was introduced to organized volleyball via intramural here at Ou. Myself, a couple coworkers, and some family friends came together to create a team and compete. Although we got destroyed for most of the season, it ignited a love for volleyball in me that I was able to continue via my experiences with my club team, and open gyms during down time. I look forward to cultivating volleyball into a hobby and social event I can call upon in moments of leisure and times of need.