Examples of what some students have done for their HS 408 internship

Greater Valley Health Education Center / Phoenix, Arizona

I am working with the community–mainly with parents of children that go to elementary school. At first my internship was geared towards the Hispanic population but the plans changed, and it became a mixture of cultures. The point is to help the community gather health information and get resources to better their health status and overall quality of life. I led classes on teaching values and improving communication with children and being able to communicate effectively during difficult situations.

I have been able to write a grant for the society. I have done valuations of patient services programs. I have been able to work with patients to help them find community resources that will help them overcome the barriers of income disparities and cancer education. I have been a part of a coalition that deals with cultural health disparities in accessing cancer prevention and care within the Hmong community. I have been able to plan and promote patient education programs.

Maricopa County Department of Public Health, Office of Public Health Policy / Phoenix, Arizona

This internship really gave me a great view of what being a “Health Educator” is like. I work closely with the Parent Ambassador Program which is a two-day class we invite parents of school-aged children to attend, and I was able to facilitate the classes and teach them how to be public health advocates for the schools. This program is great because it really teaches parents that they have a voice in the school system, and it also teaches them that schools will listen to them because the parents are the ones who see what could help make the school system better for children. This is not all the office does–in fact, a lot of other people work with analyzing policies such as getting schools on board with joint-use agreements which is where schools open their playgrounds to the public after hours so that children in the neighborhood have a safe place to play. This office also works with built-environments, and it is very interesting to see them plan for the future of the city. This internship really gave me an amazing insight on how they help to approach health and wellness in all different categories such as schools, in the county, and even for the children in neighborhoods. I was privileged to attend many different meetings as well as network with many different people in different offices of the county. This internship was great because it was very broad, and I learned many different yet valuable things from it!

I work one-on-one with special needs as well as self-contained students with reading and learning new skills. I work with children who have autism to develop social skills. I worked with ELL learners in addition to helping design a healthy food choice bulletin board. My internship has been a rewarding opportunity to meet and be of assistance to children from my community. I have learned about mental illness in children and seen how the school systems as well as teachers try to accommodate each of their needs.

Tuba City Regional Health Care / Tuba City, Arizona

My internship goal was to help overcome many disparities associated with rural inhabitants and their access to quality and timely diagnostic and screening health care services. I planned to develop and distribute a comprehensive guide for outlying clinics that aid them in efficiently and effectively getting their rural patients the most modern and thorough care that is now available to them at the Tuba City Regional Health Care facility.