Day 10

I went in on Day 10 thinking that I still needed more hours to complete the 10 hr requirement. So I met with Samantha and she directed me to Development Department of the Clinic to help out with some things for the Art Auction. She later told me that she knew that I had completed the hours but since I was already there and there were things that needed to get done, she decided she would tell me at the end :) But either way, I did not mind one bit. Actually, I was sad that this would be my last day at the clinic.

To be honest, when I first learned that we would have to volunteer at a clinic for Cell, I dreaded it thinking it would just be a hassle. But ver the last few months, I have definitely changed my opinion. Sure, it was difficult to find time to volunteer in between classes and lab but it was definitely a great experience! It was eye-opening in many ways. Sometimes I find myself get caught up in the chaos of everyday living and forget about the thousands of people who don't have the opportunities that I have. Every time I saw a patient walk into the clinic, I was reminded to be grateful for the simple things in life that I usually take for granted. I do not even think twice before making a doctor's appointment or agreeing to have a procedure done. But a lot of these people are afraid to go to the doctor since they know they can't afford it.

It was also really great to see all the medical professionals donate their time for the sake of helping these people. That was definitely inspiring. In today's world, it is rare to see someone do something for another person without getting something in return. In a few months, I will enroll in a Physician Assistant program and I pray that I do not become just another medical professional who cares only about his/herself. I hope that I have the opportunity to return to San Jose Clinic or a similar clinic as a a professional and donate my time to help those in need.

Thanks Dr. R for giving us this opportunity to volunteer. I really learned a lot and enjoyed myself!

Day 9

On Day 9, I helped around the clinic doing random things but I do not want to dicuss that, rather, I want to dedicate this blog to Samantha Sherman. She is the lady in charge of volunteering at San Jose Clniic. The first time I met Samantha was more than one year ago at the Art Auction hosted by the San Jose Clinic. My first impression was that she was a really nice lady who was on top of her stuff. She directed all the volunteers and told us what to do during the event.

The next time I saw Samantha was my first day at the Clinic. Over the last couple of months, I have only seen Samantha here and there but have kept in touch with her via emails. She is such a sweet person and just so genuine. Over the last 22 years, I have met a lot of people whether I met them through school, church or parties. But I have realized there are only a few genuine people in this world. Many people do things and help others for the sake of gaining appreciation or prestige but Samantha is definitely not one of those of people. She puts everything she has into her job and does a great job. More importantly, she is so approachable and so easy to work with! I know that I am just one of many people that she has touched through her actions. Thanks Samantha!

Day 8

Last year I had the opportunity to attend the Art Auction hosted by the San Jose Clinic. This year I had the opportunity to do a lot of the behind the scenes stuff for the event. I really wish I could attend but I am graduating on the same day!! Anyways, back to the point of this blog. On my 8th day volunteering, I was assigned the task to wrap several of the art pieces that are going to be auctioned off on May 15. In the beginning it was just me wrapping. I simply took my time and the perfectionist in me kicked in. I made sure it was wrapped perfectly, as if I was being judged. Straight edges-check, equal amounts of tape-check, art in bag-check. But I was soon joined by Jenine who was at the clinic for the very first time. She was trying to get in hours for Medical Micro. So Jenine and I are both officers for Tri Beta. But sadly, we did not get an opportunity to get to know each other so it was really good to spend some time with her! We continued to wrap the pieces and before we knew it, there were no more to wrap!
Overall, I really enjoyed my time at the clinic because I knew that my time was important to them. I also felt glad that I could continue to help them out with things needed for the Auction. Now, I just pray that the pieces I wrapped will be sold for extremely large sums of money so that the clinic can continue to help those in need within the Houston area :)

Day 7

For my 7th day at the clinic, I got to play the role of security! I have always wondered what they did besides just standing around/sitting looking super serious. Apparently a few days before I came into the clinic, someone had come into the clinic and passed security without raising any eyebrows. Later, he was found stealing from people's purses and the cops had to be called! The security guard did not hesitate to tell me this story almost immediately after I got to the clinic. So I tried to keep a close eye on everyone coming in the clinic. But I soon found myself day dreaming and finding it more difficult to focus on my designated task. However, I somehow made it through for an hour (It felt like days had gone by).

My experience as a security guard taught me to many things. First, for every good that someone does, there will always be someone scheming an evil plan. It's so sad that someone would walk into a non-profit clinic and steal. Second, despite how awful that situation was, I guess it serves as a reminder for people to be aware of their surroundings and keep an eye out for crazy people. But this applies to every day living. Sometimes people, including myself, get caught up in the consistency and comfort of every day living and forget to take a good look around and make sure that everything is okay. My third and final realization was that security guards have a really hard and boring job. I definitely gained a new appreciation for all the security guards that work all around the world. They stay alert and focused for our protection and safety. I will always be grateful for that.

Day 6

Although I have been working at the Clinic for sometime, it was not until Day 6 that I really got to learn about the Clinic. The more I learned about the Clinic, the more fortunate I felt to be a part of it!
The San Jose Clinic has been in Houston for over 85 years. It is currently the oldest continuously operating charity clinic in the country!! I had no idea! It was in 2006 that the clinic developed a plan to construct a new 55,000 square-foot facility in Downtown Houston by 2010. It is weird to think that a couple of weeks before I started volunteering, the San Jose clinic was somewhere else!
I also learned that the clinic has an annual expense of about 4. 3 million dollars - most of which is earned via contributions. Every year, the clinic has about 30,000 logged visits which include dental, primary and specialty care visits. The clinic distributes almost 1 million dollars worth of pharmaceuticals.
It's amazing to think that this Clinic in Houston is doing so much for our community. I am so glad that we got the opportunity to get involved with this Clinic this semester!

Day 5

So it's Friday and I am sitting in my second class where all of a sudden, I feel really weird. No tummy ache, no head ache, nothing aches..but I can tell that something is not right in my body. As soon as Father Ted lets us out, I almost run to my car, turn on the ignition and head home. As soon as I walk through my doors, I tell my parents I do not feel well and I go and just fall on the bed. For the next seven hours, I do not move an inch. I lay in bed feeling quite helpless. I feel so queasy but nothing I am doing is making me feel any better. I continue to feel the exact same way for another 72 hours. It's Monday evening - I finally eat my first real meal in 4 days.

But this blog is not merely to rant about Rachel Chacko catching some weird virus. Getting sick like that and feeling completely helpless really made me think about all those people that come to the San Jose Clinic. The patients at the Clinic are not nearly as fortunate as I am. At the very least, I have a mom who is an R.N., who is ready to do anything do for me at a moments notice. Many of the patients who come to the clnic have no education about how their body operates and do not even know the most basic of steps to do when sick. And even if they did, many of them simply cannot afford it. In many ways, they are so helpless, much worse than I was laying on my comfortable bed, in the comfort of my own home.

Everytime I see a patient come towards me at the clinic and begin speaking in Spanish, I all of a sudden feel so sad. I am not sure if its the language barrier that adds to this feeling. But I always feel like without that clinic, many of these people would feel absoutely alone and would simply suffer in pain. I feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to spend a few hours at this clinic every week. I know that it is not really a big deal to volunteer for a couple of hours. But I like to tell myself that no matter what I am doing, in some small way, my time at the clniic will help touch the life of someone who really needs a helping hand.

And that is all the things I learned from catching a stupid virus that destroyed my entire weekend :)

Day 4

Unlike all the other times I had volunteered, I helped out with medical records during my 4th trip to the clinic. I had heard a lot of horror stories of what actually went down at medical records but I figured I should experience it for myself. To my surprise..I actually liked it! I worked with Kyley. Our main responisbility was to file the folders that were taken out during the patients' appointment.
The sad part is that most of the medical records are stored in boxes. The clinic does not have enough cabinets. And this makes it difficult for the older volunteers to pick up several boxes stacked together and get on the floor to look through and find the folder that they need. So it was nice that we could help them out during our brief time there.
There's an older volunteer by the name of Jack who who works in medical records. He is probably close to 80. He has a thick Brooklyn accent and is a hoot! He says the funniest things and it definitely makes the experience interesting. to say the least. I had heard a lot of stories about Jack so it was good to finally meet him. It's motivating to see someone that well into their years being proactive in the community. Although Jack is stuck in his ways and wants everything done the "Jack way", I think it is very admirable that he takes time out of his day to come to the clinic and help out! It was deinitely inspiring:)