First week reflection and then some...

By the time the first week (Monday, August 22nd) arrived, I was ready to start classes and get back on class schedule. It was exciting the weekend before catching up with everyone getting back into town that had been gone over the summer months (June-August), since I had been here in Iowa City interning in Emergency Management at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

I was able to meet a lot of the first-year graduate students in my department of Health Management of Policy (HMP) through an HMP picnic in the middle of the week and some friendly kick-ball competition between incoming Master's students and those returning. In addition, I was able to meet all of the incoming Master of Public Health (MPH) students from all the departments through my role as a graduate assistant (GA) with the MPH Program Orientation on Friday (August 19th). There were a variety of backgrounds represented and a good mix from all the different subtracks, which I am in Policy.

Overall, I am glad to be back in the swing of things, even if the first week or I should say weekend after looking back over what I wrote ;) The first week was stressful in terms of getting organized, figuring out assignments/projects and the simple fact of getting back on school schedule and not being on a 8-5 model.

I will have more to report in the coming days as the Fall Semester begins, but for now wanted to check back in and let you know I am alive and excited/sad that this will be my final academic year going for my Master of Health Administration (MHA) and MPH in Policy.

Ryan

Work/Life and finding the balance:

So today I realized it is already one week into August and I can't believe it's been awhile since my last post. Things truly do fly by, faster and faster as each year goes on, it's like a speeding train with no end in sight, except for the whole end of life thing, but we as young people don't like to think about that, at least those that have a living will, which if you are reading this right now and do not have one, stop reading and get one, ASAP!

To get back on track, life passes you by quickly for one of two reasons (1) because the years are getting shorter (2) you love what you do and enjoy life! I'm thinking that number one isn't proven yet, but had to throw it in there. I was reminded this week of how addicting work can be and also having good friends, family and those that make you happy. I didn't even want to leave work today because I couldn't stand that fact that what I was working on wasn't completely finished at the VA, but the beauty of work is to know when you get to a stopping point and you can pick up where you left off the next day. I would say that is one of the most challenging areas I struggle with and you may too or might already have, how to balance your work with life (family, friends, etc.).

It's an ongoing "struggle" but a good one. Find those that respect your work and also that you would want to make time for. You only have one life to live, so pick people and the type of work you love doing, being around and that makes you happy and motivated to keep at it everyday.

If you're reading this blog I assume you have an interest in Public Health. I hope you have found an area that makes you happy and that you continue to be motivated to learn about and is rewarding.

Ryan

PS - Picture of a summer trip to see some of my undergrad friends. I would have posted a picture from work, but can't take pictures on the VA property, hopefully will get the official Media person the VA campus take a photo of me so you all know I'm doing actual work this summer ;)

Emergency Management and Debt

So as you all know there are a lot of issues on in the U.S.A. right now, everything from weather to debt debates in Washington. All too real are the issues that hit close to home, and one of those that myself has been dealing with and I hope to make a future career out of, is Emergency Preparedness or Management.

As you might have read before, there are a lot of branches that stem from the base of Emergency Management (EM). EM is very vital when it comes to weather related events, which occur almost every week and can affect a location in a matter of minutes, leaving destruction, displacement and a team of professionals hard at work to deal with immediate response issues and long-term recovery. Some issues, are not always weather related. For example, working at the VA here in Iowa City I have learned very quickly how construction projects can cause unanticipated internal flooding and how the temperature alone can affect an entire hospital's ability to cool itself. Many hospitals rely on "chillers" to cool their facilities by running cold water through pipes and having ventilation to circulate the air. The factor of heat and humidity together puts enormous stress on these systems which had forced the VA to conserve energy, by shutting off lights, equipment and heat producing devices that were not needed or limiting their use in non-clinical areas. This not only releases strain on the cooling system, because it spends less energy having to cool a space, it also saves money and can produce a calming effect in the work environment, which are great benefits I realized and others did I work with.

All in all, I hope you have pushed the boundaries a little during times of high stress and could realize the benefit of doing things differently or chipping in when it's needed. You can take what you want from this and apply it to the national debate on the debt occurring in Washington. I leave you to interpret what you want and make your own choice, but remember to stay vigilant and always stay open to new ideas and to listen to both cases for any argument, whether it be how to deal with the heat of a debate or the literal heat outside.

Ryan

4th of July and News!

As I read the morning paper while spending time at home I can't help but notice the top story on the front page of the Chicago Tribune stating "E. coli test of produce may be cut."

If only I weren't a public health nerd I would probably glance over this story or think to myself, what is going on with our food system and government? Are we about to cut a program that helps protect our produce here in the United States?

I read more into the article and thankfully the Senate still needs to vote on the bill, but the House had already approved the bill that would end funding for the Microbiological Data Program. Now I am now epidemiologist or aspiring lab analyst, but I can appreciate the public health work done in those fields and help bring the policy to fulfill such roles. I like the Chi-Tribune article because it gives you the background story of why such a bill would even be thought of, which comes down to special interests, which mainly lay with the commercial produce industry in this case. Wether it's deciding what to eat tonight, what politician you might vote for in 2012 or arguing why we have might have a law that would cut safety testing for our nation's produce, make sure to dig a little deeper than the outside cover of something that you might find to be quite juicy inside!

In any instance, I hope you all enjoy your 4th of July and make sure those burgers are cooked to the right temperature, produce washed properly and of course, fire safety in mind ;)

Happy 4th of July!

Ryan

Fun in the Sun!

The weather has finally "cooled" off here in the midwest, but I kind of liked the warm middle to upper 90's! Sometimes the sun and heat feel good when lying next to the pool, which I try to do as much as I can! I worked at a pool in high school for over 5 year (3 as a lifeguard) and sunscreen was a major deal then as it is today.

There was a recent article in the New York Times (NYT) that just broke that the F.D.A. will be unveiling new regulations on sunscreen, specifically the controversy of words like "sweat-proof" and "waterproof." In addition, they wanted to make sure that a sunscreen protected against both UVA and UVB rays, which are both damaging. This is a huge public health push and one not to be taken lightly. With the University of Iowa being in the midwest, there no beaches, except for those plots of sand on lakes we like to call "beaches" ;)

Public Health is all around us, whether we like it or not. Let's take the pool, there are regulations on the chlorine and other chemicals that go into the water, temperature of the water, signage around the pool, entering/exiting spots for the pool, etc. Without public health, many of these areas maybe unsafe or not held accountable when there are issues at hand.

I hope you all have gotten in a little pre-summer dip, cause we all know that Summer doesn't officially begin till June 21st :)

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