Name: Jillian Goles
Internship, Co-op or Research Site: Johns Hopkins Hospital
Location of the Organization (City, State): Baltimore, MD
Title of Your Position: Clinical Customer Service Representative (CCSR)/Adolescent Psychiatric Assistant
Major(s)/Minor(s): INDS, Pediatric Health
Expected Graduation Date (Month & Year): May 20141. Briefly describe your internship, co-op, research or service-learning position/assignment, including your day-to-day tasks and responsibilities.
In the Child & Adolescent Inpatient Psychiatric Unit at Johns Hopkins Hospital I am committed patient admissions and discharges, the welcoming of patients and their families, chart builds, bed assignments, logging of nurse phones, and other administrative duties. Becoming familiar with the legal and medical documents as well as learning how to navigate the clinical desktops has been an extraordinary learning experience. I am also a resource for all children in our unit. We play games and make crafts together. I monitor each child’s behavior throughout the day, redirecting them as needed and reporting distinct behaviors to nurses, doctors, and nurse managers.
2. What have you enjoyed the most about your position or organization/company and what have you found most challenging?
What I enjoy most is being around the children. I enjoy being a role model for them and being able to reward them for good behavior. Each interaction I have with them teaches me something new; something that cannot be learned in a classroom. I am learning how to modify my own behavior to thus elicit the behavior I would like from them; really intrigues me. However, working in a unit where the children are sometimes readmitted is tough. Our unit really works hard to make a difference but sometimes the children lapse. Unfortunately, we are only able to provide the child with the attention they need while they are in our presence. It’s hard knowing that when they leave they may be facing the same hardships that they had when they were admitted. You really have to have strong faith that a child will recover or harness their illness after they leave.
3. What have you gained from your experience that you could not have gained from another summer activity?
Working at Johns Hopkins Hospital has had a dramatic affect on my life; it helped me discover myself. I grew up thinking law school was where my education would blossom. Instead, I now have plans to attend University of Maryland School of Nursing. My unit and the children have had a lot to do with that. Had I not applied for this position, I would never have met the great staff here at Hopkins nor would I have known that nursing was ultimately what I wanted to do. Hopkins offers a sense of pride and encouragement for students that is incredibly empowering. Working at Hopkins has also taught me how important it is to be in a workplace that is flexible with schooling and encouraging of your decisions. In fact, it’s something I believe every college student should seek.
4. How do you see your summer work as meaningful? Has it given you a chance to work on issues or with communities that matter to you?
My work here at Hopkins has given meaning to my own life as well as to many of the children’s lives whom I’ve met here in the unit. My experiences here have given meaning to everything I’ve studied in psychology thus far; it all makes sense. I always knew I wanted to work with children that have been diagnosed with mental disorders. However, this was something I didn’t expect to do until later on in my studies. I am so grateful to have gotten this experience. It is so fulfilling and has already given me a taste of my dream job. I am proud to say I will definitely being staying at Hopkins for a while.
5. How has your summer experience shaped the way you think about your power to impact the world? This might involve skills you’ve gained, information you’ve learned, mentors you’ve connected with, or projects you’ve completed.
Before this, I worried that I wouldn’t find the right place to start my career. At 20 years old, I have no doubt now that I have chosen the right path and place for myself. Every day my unit changes lives a little at a time. What an incredible feeling it is to help a child. Johns Hopkins is definitely where I want to be; I hope to be an adolescent psychiatric nurse practitioner in the future. It’s really nice to already have this sense of confirmation as a student. Knowing that I have made the right choice is a remarkable feeling.
