An experience of a lifetime, that is the best way to describe my internship at Parmer Medical Center. I have grown as a person and have learned so much from this opportunity; I also stuck to it and began achieving the goals I had set for myself. I wanted to build on my interpersonal communication and have done so by speaking with basically every patient I encountered, and with every one of my co-workers; I will continue to have real, genuine conversations with those I encounter in life. The second goal I set for myself was, to work on my punctuality and organization. I achieved this goal as well by being five to ten minutes early every day, whether it was in the emergency room, hospital, or clinic. I will continue to be five to ten minutes early for any job, meeting, or anything else that has time constraints. The final goal I set for myself was, asking for help, advice, and guidance. I was the most worried about achieving this goal because of my shyness, but as I began to grow my confidence and realized I didn’t fully understand everything we saw, I began asking for more help, and asking more questions. I found myself asking four, five, even six, or seven questions a day, and this was how I accomplished my goal. I have grown more confident, and now I plan to build on this goal even more by asking questions when I am lost or asking for help and advice when I am struggling with something.
You may be wondering why I found this internship to be an experience of a lifetime, and there are multiple reasons why, this is due to what I was learning and doing, the work itself, and the people I was able to meet. I was able to learn so much about medicine during this internship; much was learned on the spot in a bit of a hurry in the emergency room, and even more was learned when I had the opportunity to work in the clinic with Dr. Jubay. I mostly did CNA work in the hospital and ER, but I was able to step in on some procedures and saw the professionals in action. When I was in the clinic, I shadowed the doctor, made rounds to the nursing home with him, and was able to pick his brain; learning more everyday about medical practice, diagnosis and diseases, and how different medicines react with one another. These experiences are what made this internship an opportunity I will never forget! So, I was able to expand my knowledge, grow myself as an individual, and above all, I was able to build relationships, in the hospital and clinic, and even at the retreat before my internship began. I met tons of fascinating and extremely cool individuals at the OC retreat, and that kicked off my relationship building. When I came to the hospital and clinic, it was a bit odd at first, I felt like an outsider, but soon after, I felt like I was apart of the family at PMC, and I am grateful for that and everything this internship brought me! I know that everything I learned, how much I grew as a person, and the things I got to do, will carry over into my future and help me get into medical school, and will help me thrive while doing so!
