Presenter: Mason Khalilzadeh, Finance , Global Public Health Scholars
For my position, I am volunteering at Washington Hospital Center. The main role that I will play in this program is patient interaction. This involves tasks such as patient wheelchair assistance, where I push patients to their clinical destinations. This also includes other tasks such as bedside assistance and talking to patients and cheering them up. I chose this role because I believe that patient care has a huge impact on public health. The recovery of the patients is hugely dependent on what type of environment they are in, so if patients are comfortable in their environment, they will most likely improve in health much faster. For example, a lot of patients had much difficulty moving around and had trouble drinking liquids and eating. Helping them receive the proper attention they need is crucial for their treatment.
Hey Mason! In what ways has your firsthand experience volunteering at a hospital changed your perception of physicians and medical staff?
I also believe the quality of patient care is lacking. Hospitals are very often stretched thin with their staffing. It sounds like what you did was really helpful and it must've felt satisfying to be able to help like you did. What was your favorite unit to work in? Did you find similarities in the patients' perspectives on their outlook?
I have also volunteered at the Washington Hospital Center! It was an amazing experience but I did also notice it was understaffed for the amount of people there. What do you hope to utilize from your experience in your career and everyday life? Which part of the patient experience is most lacking and needs the most urgent help?
How do you hope to implement what you learned in your experience in your future career? What do you suggest in order to improve staff to patient ratio?