Approaching the End with New Perspectives

It feels like just yesterday that I began this amazing journey as an NHC member. This journey has provided me with loads of experience within public health, broadened my understanding of health disparities, graced me with new colleagues, and challenged my view of volunteerism.

One of my best experiences as an NHC member has been the opportunity to participate in the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative at Erie Teen Center. This program allows NHC members to tour Chicago Public Schools teaching comprehensive Sexual Health Education to students. The opportunity to give students proper education on how to protect themselves from unwanted pregnancies and Sexual Transmitted Infections has been amazing. It has been fulfilling to help empower teenagers to take charge of their sexual health. To date, I have helped provide 1,637 students with sexual health education.

Another great component of my position as a Health Educator is being a health navigator. As a health navigator, I help patients apply for health insurance through the marketplace and Medicaid. This experience has helped me understand the process of applying for health insurance and has given me insight about some barriers to obtaining health care insurance. I have been able to interact with patients, hear their stories, and provide them with as much information as I know about health insurance.

Additionally, I have had the opportunity to be a co-facilitator for the Centering Pregnancy program that provides first-time mothers with prenatal care information, information on infant care, and postpartum care. It has been really awesome to provide support to the patients at Teen Center who are young and nervous about becoming a mother.

Volunteerism before service was always a short-term commitment. Being an NHC member for 9 months has given me a new perspective on volunteerism. It isn't a one-time commitment. Volunteerism is about fully investing your gifts and time, as well as producing amazing effects. It's a way of life. It's being mindful of the difficulties people face and committing your gifts to serve them in whatever capacity. Volunteerism is also educating yourself. It's learning and researching information that will deepen your passion and open your horizon to the needs around you. Volunteerism is being aware. Service as an NHC member has allowed me to create new ideas, become aware of issues, and become more sensitive to the public health and social justice issues pertaining to one's health.

The skills that I have gained as an AmeriCorps member can go on and on. Gaining experience was something I looked forward to as a member, but I couldn't have imagined how much experience I would gain. I have increased my knowledge of sexual health and nutrition. I have gained teaching and public speaking experience. Being able to interact with patients is a skill I never thought I needed, but it has been so helpful to interact with patients, understand their needs, and help them navigate their options. Learning how to use the Electronic Medical Records system has also been a great addition to my resume, since most healthcare companies require that experience.

Lastly, I have learned and developed team building skills. National Health Corps Chicago has done an amazing job creating a comfortable, open team environment. Being in a corps for 9 months now has taught me how to interact, how to lead, how to communicate, and how to be a part of a team. The amazing opportunity to interact with a diverse group of individuals who share the same compassion for the health of the community has really motivated me while serving as an AmeriCorps member.

To end, NHC rocks! It's really been a cool opportunity to be part of, in order to gain public health experience and to serve the city of Chicago.

This blog post was written by NHC Chicago 2016-17 member Mica Noel.

Mica is a Health Educator at Erie Family Health Center - Teen Center.