VA Internship :)

Started my first day at my internship today at the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) Medical Center in Iowa City! I hit the ground running with an 8:00AM meeting with administration and toured the hospital and got oriented to the new work environment. I'll be working with an alumni of our program (MHA) in the College of Public Health and with the Associate Director of Operations (i.e. COO) of the VA Medical Center. Everyone is very energetic and willing to answer questions, in which I had a lot being my first day and will probably be the case throughout the summer.

Learning the structure and how the VA works is definitely a task in itself, but it helped me respect and realize how much is offered through the Department of Veteran Affairs. If you ever have a moment, I would highly encourage you to look (www.va.gov). No matter the health system, new place of employment or just starting out grad school, you should always spend time getting to know how the structure or governance operates and functions. These become important when working with others, how decisions are made and when you might need to request funds for a project.

To wrap up this up with some more advice and just things I have learned thus far on my journey through life, I would have to say that "First Impressions are Lasting Impressions", this is true most of the time and the VA certainly made a great impression on me and I hope I gave the same back :)

Ryan

Tornados and Emergency Preparedness!

So if you were watching the news the past day and a half, you probably heard about the major storm system that ripped through the midwest. Rockford, my hometown where I am currently at visiting the family, was one of those places. Yesterday was the first time I had actually heard the tornado sirens go off in face of a line of thunderstorms rolling through the region and also the first time my family and I have used our tornado room in our basement.

Not everyone has a tornado room, but we were sure glad to have it yesterday. As my Mom, Dad, lil sis Lexie (rat terrier) and I tried to squeeze in the space that had become a dumping ground for wrapping paper, storage and unused items, I sighed and told my Mom that this was not the way the space should be used. I can't even count the number of times I had cleaned that room out when I was in middle and high school and back home from college vacations, but had not recently cleaned it out.

It was another reminder to have an emergency plan and supplies in place. Can you identify what to do, where to go and have supplies ready on a moments notice when an emergency arises, if not then you should probably have this conversation. Myself working on various Emergency Preparedness projects at the University of Iowa have been immersed in the culture, but others out there depend, sometimes too heavily, on others to take care of them.

Please be ready and visit http://www.ready.gov/ for more tips :)

Hope you all were not too affected by the storms and are thinking of those that were,

Ryan

It Gets Better!

So as I was watching "Dancing with the Stars" with my parents this evening, a commercial came on with the Google Chrome logo and then headlines stating "Bullied for being gay" and "The suicides of gay teenagers." It was a commercial highlighting the IT GETS BETTER PROJECT, which a guy named Dan Savage created a YouTube video with his partner Terry to inspire hope for young people facing harassment. Within two months it was a worldwide movement, inspiring thousands of people that It Gets Better!

I watched the commercial with my loving parents there with me, who I had only come out to right before I started my MPH at Iowa two years ago. I was dating my boyfriend Cody at the time, who had been out since high school and had gone through so much more harassment and struggles that I couldn't even begin to relate to. I was never "out" in high school and even went to a pretty liberal college, but knew when a community advisor (CA or RA equivalent) got harassed by guys on his floor for being gay that it prevented me from coming out earlier to my friends and family. I eventually came out to friends my senior year in college, but wish I would have sooner, it was so much easier to be myself and not have people wondering "Is he gay?"

I want to share the commercial I saw, because it inspired me to pledge and be reminded that there are so many others out there that are going through many more struggles of trying to fit in and being harassed for who they are.

Please help reduce teen suicide (Public Health message ;) and contribute your pledge: http://www.itgetsbetter.org/

With love,

Ryan

Finals and Geriatrics!

So I have my last presentation today for finals week, at least for this semester, haha...I still have one more year in my dual masters programs and will be spending the summer working at the VA Medical Center here in Iowa City, IA.

Part of the reason I chose the VA was due to the presentation I am giving today! Through my Medicare and Medicaid class, I was paired with two others in the class to research, write and present on geriatric marketing and education, specifically geriatric health literacy and engagement. We have been able to meet with health professionals and researchers in the Center on Aging, the Iowa Geriatric Education Center, School of Nursing and the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics (UIHC). The picture above kind of summarizes the technologic advancements occurring in the healthcare field while trying to make sure the aging population is able to still understand the literacy of materials and innovations. In addition, most people want to stay in their home for healthcare, so utilizing technology in the home is one of the most important and most prevalent type being researched. Examples include monitored medication dispensers in the home that notify care givers and health professionals when medications are not taken, just another way to help the elderly stay at home.

Well I got to get back to go over the presentation a couple more times and then it's SUMMER!

Good luck to all your finals and finishing up the semester :)

Ryan

May 1st and Kickball!

Good Morning May!

I can't believe it is already May 1st! With only a week left of classes and finals, it seems like things have just flown by this year, which isn't that the case every year, things seem to move faster and faster each year. There has been a lot that has happened this past week but a highlight was playing Kickball for Cancer yesterday afternoon for the College of Public Health!

There was a faculty/staff team, and pretty much one from every department, including two from Health Management and Policy (HMP), in which I was part of one of them. It was a long day of tourney, but ironically it came down to the the two HMP teams for a domination round that was full of competition, music and sliders from both teams. Even though I was not on the winning team, it was great to have an event where you can relax and have fun with everyone in the College outside of classes, computer labs and projects.

With it being May 1st, it is so nice to get outside again and have it be sunny and the fact you can get sunburnt again, haha...

Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend and hopefully were able to make it outside for a little fun in the sun!

Ryan