This summer I worked as an intern at St. Clare Health Mission while shadowing a variety of healthcare jobs within Emplify Health. Over the course of 8 weeks, I got the chance to work with the unhoused and individuals living in extreme poverty.
During this internship, I utilized my strength as a learner to expand my understanding of what qualities make up a good physician. I learned many important lessons about how to connect with people who live difficult lives. The doctors and community health workers of Saint Clare helped people who were at their lowest. This meant they often had to deal with difficult situations. I learned that in those situations it is important to understand that you cannot fix everything that is wrong in someone’s life, but it is still important to do what you can to help them. Many of the people that they saw were able to get connected with additional services and get help with housing and finding a job, so although the physicians could only treat their physical ailments, they were able to connect their patients with others who could provide further help. Getting to witness healthcare professionals working in hospitals and clinics was also a very important part of the learning experience. I was exposed to the large variety of careers that are present in medicine. Although doctors are viewed by most people as being the most important people within healthcare, they rely on the help of many people in order to care for even one patient. Something that stuck with me from the internship was seeing how many different doctors, nurses, and other professions like therapists are on one patient’s chart. This showed me that cooperation is one of the most important foundations of medicine. This experience made me more certain that I want to become a physician in the future.
Firstly, I would like to thank Dr. Scott Rathgaber. Without his generosity in providing housing and food as well as connecting Wabash to Emplify Health, this internship would not be possible. Additionally I would like to thank Jason Larsen, the director of Saint Clare Health Mission, Michael Fitzpatrick, the director of the mobile medicine program, and Jill Rogers.
