To incoming members: Making the most of your service year

This blog is for all the incoming National Health Corps (NHC) Pittsburgh members. First of all, I want to say a huge congratulations to you all! Being offered a NHC position is an accomplishment and definitely worth celebrating. I encourage you to carry that with you as move through your service term so that when times get hard, you can remember that we believed you were right for the job from the beginning. My hope with this blog is to share in your excitement and also share a few words of advice on how to make the most of this experience, so here they are!

1. Embrace the challenge.
Throughout your service term, you are bound to encounter a variety of challenges, some expected and others not so much. There will be challenges in learning how to complete your responsibilities, fitting in at your site, and connecting with your patients or clients among many others. It will take time to establish relationship with your mentor and to figure out exactly what you want your experience to look like. Sometimes, you will surprise yourself with how much you have accomplished and the difference you are making, and other days, you may wonder how things are not working out even though you have worked really hard on them. I encourage you to approach every day ready to embrace the challenges ahead. For me, these challenges have enriched my experience and given me more than I could have expected out of my service term. If you try, you can and you will navigate through them and grow from them, and the rest of the Corps will be there to support you every step of the way!

2. Let your voice be heard.
One of the beautiful things about serving with AmeriCorps is that your experience will be what you make of it. Even though your position comes with certain expectations and responsibilities, you are free to work with your mentor to modify your position as you like. In addition to meeting the needs of the community, this experience is also about preparing you for your professional life after service. What are your interests or passions? What professional arenas do you want to explore? Speak up! Be intentional about working with your mentor to incorporate experiences that will allow you to explore your interests and further you professionally. Shadow other members at their sites. Start a project. Take advantage of regional trainings and conferences, and network as you go. Its ok, even encouraged, to mold this term of service into the experience that will be perfect for you.

3. Take advantage of the Corps community.
It may be easy to think of your service year in terms of what you will individually experience, but I think you would be doing yourself a disservice. One of the best parts of my NHC Pittsburgh experience has most definitely been the beautiful people that have been by my side as I have gone through it. My Corps community has been such a great support to me. They have celebrated with me during the good times and pity-partied with me through the hard times. We have gone on adventures and tried things that we never would have tried on our own. I have had the pleasure of getting to know them, and they have been my family during this year. This is not to say that we have not had our disagreements or our ups and downs, but this is what relationship entails. For me, it has been so worth it to get to know my fellow members, and my experience has been more enriched because of them.

4. Empathize with those you serve.
Of all things I will carry with me as I move on after this service term, this is the closest to my heart. Coming into this experience, serving my community was already a part of who I am, but I had never had such an opportunity as this to work with underserved patients on their health needs, and I have come to love and genuinely care for the people that I serve (not because they are compliant-- definitely not because they are compliant). It has been such a privilege to be invited into the lives and histories of my patients and then be able to partner with them in working towards achieving their health goals. Through my patients, I have seen so many different ways of approaching life and so many different sets of values and beliefs. They have shared with me their stories and the things that are important to them. They have looked to me for encouragement, and I have looked to them for encouragement. In opening myself to seeing life how they see it, we, as a team, have been able to accomplish great things. Empathy has created an avenue by which my patients have taught me so much, and I have been able to help them with their needs, and I think it will make all the difference in your service experience as well.

I wish you the best of luck!