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Internship with American Red Cross

Name:

Date: 05/09/2020

Internship with American Red Cross

Introduction

My Internship at the American Red Cross has been one of the most amazing experiences I’ve had in my education. Being a first experience in the US, I had to adapt to the new environment and job as a Public Health. For the past seven weeks, I have learned a lot of things that have made me develop professionally through the activities I took. The skills and knowledge acquired in this job are very critical in both my personal life and my future career. In addition to technical skills, I have developed various interpersonal skills such as communication, punctuality, and have become a more responsible person. My relationships with fellow employees, volunteers, and other interns were boosted and was able to cope up with everyone in my department. The organization had people from different backgrounds, cultures, and tribes with a common goal, and this made work even more exciting through diversity. The training processes I underwent during this internship are further described in detail. After every training, the interns were given a graded quiz for evaluation and a certificate of completion awarded.

Employee Orientation

On the first day of the internship, I was introduced to the Agency at American Red Cross by the Director, Ms. J.C. She introduced me to the other staff within the agency, and showing me the office, she took me through a tour of the agency. She showed me several rooms, a kitchen, and a storage room used to store office materials. The director also took me through the agency’s online website, where I completed a series of online and face to face training activities. I learned about various activities, events, and programs organized by the agency and other programs. Ms. J.C also gave me a link to access EDGE (Engagement, Development, Growth, and Education), an online portal through which the agency interns get weekly online training, besides the occasional face-to-face training.

First Week

In the first week, I took the training on Basic Food Safety and Mass Care. The Basic Food Safety course was an online course that focused on topics such as food preparation, handling, and serving. The course entailed training on foodborne illness, personal hygiene and handwashing, and the food flow process. Additionally, the course provided training on human nutrition. The Mass Care course is an online course where the instructor introduces the learner to mass care activities. The aspects of the course include sheltering, emergency supply distribution, feeding, and reunification services provide to people during a disaster. Here, I learned how to perform various roles in mass care. At the end of the training, I took a graded quiz, and a certificate of completion was awarded to me. Within this week, there were also basic social training on how to interact with others and maintain the best standards of practice within the agency. Various communication guidelines were issues to us to ensure effective communication between ourselves and also the authorities. The training helped us understand adequate socialization and also gave practical knowledge of the use of technology in a working environment.

Second Week

In the second week, we received training on Blood Drive, and Bulk Distribution Fundamentals. The Blood Drive lessons were about RAPIDPASS, a technology that assisted donors in completing the pre-donation readings and answering health history questions using a computer or a mobile phone. This technology aimed to reduce time spent on donor drives as the donors could print their (RapidPass) on arrival. As the week progressed, I took training on bulk distribution, a course that provided the roles of a bulk distribution worker. The course entailed the products that the Red Cross provides to the disaster victims and the methods used to distribute and safety procedures. I learned that bulk distribution workers provide essential basic needs, offer cleanup, and sanitation services quickly and effectively to the victims of a disaster. These items are distributed either through mobile delivery or given at fixed sites. We used a Disaster Requisition form to request items from the Logistics, and every inventory was recorded in a Bulk Distribution Daily Site. Through the daily recording of stock, I acquired skills in record taking and keeping, which assisted me in performing my daily tasks.

Third Week

In the third week, I learned about Disaster Mental Health Fundamentals and the actual process of the blood drive. The Disaster Mental Health Fundamentals course explained the services provided by the mental health workers to disaster victims in real-life situations. The blood drive lesson entailed the whole process of blood donation. I learned about the requirements of blood donation. I learned that a donor needs to be in good health, and the donation age varied depending on sex. A male donor needs to be at least 17years old, while a female donor should be at least 19years old. In addition to age, height and weight also influenced the blood donation process. I learned about the Power Red donation, which focused on donating a concentrated dose of red blood cells to the recipients who are in need due to their health conditions.

Fourth and Fifth Weeks

In the fourth and fifth weeks, we focused on CPR+First Aid and Handling a Crisis Call. The CPR+First Aid training was a blended portion training that offered an online learning platform and a complete face to face portion training in a classroom setting hold it at BGMU. In addition to the first aid training, I received training on Handling a Crisis Call. This training was aimed at improving the performance and confidence of disaster dispatchers when handling crisis calls. This one-hour web-based training involved using a scenario to train on handling suicidal, homicidal, or endangered callers. The training was offered to the employees and volunteers yearly and an assessment administered by the Disaster Mental Health responder. All disaster agents were required to take training before their first shift and request for evaluation through the supervisor. Through this training, I learned the interaction rules, caller identification, and the risk involved, such as domestic violence. I am, therefore, able to identify possible emotional/physical reactions when handling crisis calls and apply relevant protocols in real-life situations.

Sixth Week

In the sixth week, we underwent training on Health Services Fundamentals-1. This course provided participants with details on how health service workers respond during regional disasters. The course entailed activities varying from underlying health issues to emergency health issues. Through this training, I learned about the reactions I should take whenever a disaster requiring quick intervention occurs in a particular region. The safety issues which always arise during these disasters were discussed, and the level of preparedness needed to handle such matters highlighted. This training was critical since accidents occur in various forms, and a health service provider responds differently to each disaster.

Seventh Week

In the seventh week of my internship, I got to learn the Health Service Fundamentals-2, shelter fundamentals, and conducted a two-day donation to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief. In the second phase of Health Service Fundamentals, the course gave an overview of health services related to large-scale disaster response. In the shelter fundamentals, we focused on the provision of safety, shelter, meals, and a caring presence to the people during a disaster. This training was aimed at providing hope and stability to those who need it most through sheltering, thereby positively impacting lives. An accident can strike anytime. Therefore, knowing the right response to the disaster beforehand is very vital in providing shelter and comfort to those who most need it. The course, therefore, prepares one for the roles and responsibilities to be performed at a Red Cross shelter. The scope of learning revolved around resourcing, opening, operating, and closing the shelter. At the end of this week we went to the street to engage with a donation rising for American Red Cross disaster relief in two days at two different locations, in these two days I touched of how people desire goodness and love to help.

Coming weeks

Working at a blood drive event held at Holiday Inn over the past weeks has been increased my internship knowledge with blood drive. There is a lot that I have gained from the drive useful in both my personal life and my career progress. The knowledge that I have gained over this period would have not been gained elsewhere and I believe that the time spent working at Red cross has not gone in vain. Over the period I have worked with people from different backgrounds, cultures, social norms, and beliefs and this has only but helped me improve on the cultural integration and awareness with people from different diversities. Working with the paramedics has also equipped me with some of the healthcare basics that I can always make myself useful whenever the need arises. Generally, the last seven weeks have changed my perceptions about life and human perceptions on various issues.

My job at the blood drive mainly involved assisting the donor to register and check the medical history (RapidPass) and helping paramedics in any assistance that they required. I had to work with my fellow interns to ensure that all the expectations bestowed on us are satisfactorily met. This also involved ensuring that the needs of the donor are also managed on a timely basis before the situation gets worse. For instance, those that had donated blood and seeking way out I would easily help them out and inquire from them if they required any assistance within the blood drive so that I can guide them appropriately. Besides that, I would also help them understand their next appointment and ensure that they understand what’s expected of them after the donation so that they can remain physically fit despite the donation. This allowed me to serve people and show the art of humility when saving people from different diversity while in the process gaining the experience required in the field.

Eighth Week

In the course of the eighth week, we carried on with the fundamental skills and requirements required at the times of the pandemic. Red Cross Organization is one of the major NGO (Nongovernmental Organizations) in the world that have always been on the frontline in times of emergencies. However, what most people fail to acknowledge is the role that leaders of this noble organization play to ensure that everything runs smoothly. We learned that as a leader there are numerous challenges that the NGO faces such as inadequate funds to help in solving various pandemic outbreaks in the world and being there whenever required. For instance, with the current COVID-19 pandemic we learned that we should take the initiative and be our leaders by ensuring that there is adhering to the standards that have been set by CDC and WHO. We were also to ensure that the donors understand the effects that come with this new pandemic and thus ensure that they don’t endanger themselves and their loved ones.

The third day of the eighth week involved studying the stress management of the victims of the disasters that take place in various parts of the world. Every disaster comes with its mental disorientation and the faster the leadership team identifies the mental disorientation done the earlier management of the situation. As a result, we learned that it’s always important to assess the damage done, the victims, and how they have generally been affected by changes brought by the pandemic. Through this analysis, we would then initiate some counseling and guidance initiatives aimed to ensure the victims accept the impacts of the situation and the most appropriate ways in which they can live with the prevailing factors.

Ninth Week

In the ninth week, we embarked on the mission of aiding the donors to understand the significant role that they play in the management of disasters. Red Cross encounters various situations in the world, in case an event takes place in any part of the world, the priority of consideration is usually to call Red Cross and the organization should always be available with at least some remedies and solutions on the prevailing situation. As a result, this training focused on the understanding of the roles of the nursing profession while also ensuring that there is equipping the donors with the information on the significant roles they play towards the management of these pandemics in the world. For instance, blood donors usually play a vital role in ensuring that the running of the facilities and management of the disasters is easily done by the use of the blood donated hence making it easier to manage the situation and alleviate the situation before it gets out of hand. Therefore, it’s vital that these individuals are encouraged and motivated to continue supporting the hospital and patient in need through the donations. In this regard, to ensure that everything runs out smoothly, I had to show the donors out of the facility while also reminding them of their next schedule to ensure that they at least donate when the time comes though the experience they get by being treated with high esteem that they deserve.

Tenth Week

The The tenth week came with the new training on the analysis of the situation and initiation of the changes whenever the need arises. There is always a need to understand the current situation, as each condition calls for specific ways of handling the situation. As a result, it’s always vital that there is an effective analysis of the situation, understanding of what’s taking place, and then initiating appropriate measures that would result in desired results. In this training, we focused on the public safety and compensation measures in which aimed at ensuring that in the event a disaster took place it's vital that there is an assessment of the most appropriate ways of handling the situation before acting. This was taken into consideration as a way to ensure that during the process of managing the situation, the situation does not become worse and cause more devastating impacts than it was before the initial management of the situation began by our team. Therefore, we learned that having various options in which we can initiate to manage the situation helps in ensuring that the situation is at least handled in the most accurate way to avoid further impacts.

Also volunteer with Red Cross blood drive as ambassadors enabled me to acquire the skills and knowledge required in the recruitment of the donor ambassadors that would help in spearheading the activities in the future programs initiated by the group. This means that with the skills that I have acquired during this period I can always initiate a successful recruitment exercise to ensure that the desired goals of the team are achieved. The ambassadors of the group are the public images of the group which has to always ensure that they have the required set standard that represents the image of the facility to the public. The recruited ambassadors should be able to meet the expectations of the donors in society. This is such that they abide by what it’s expected to be done by the donors in public so that they continue being donors to help those that seek their services.

Eleventh Week

Finally, during the eleventh week of the internship, we learned about an essential sector of the facility. The continuation of the facility ensures that after the current crop of leaders and staff are gone there should be a continuation of the important activities conducted by the organization. In this regard, we learned about the recruitment and mentoring of the new donor ambassadors. These are to be the next key players in the management of the NGO and ensure that the services required are rendered at the right time and using the right resources. We learned that this work calls for those individuals that are willing to work voluntarily to save human life rather than be employed to earn a living. This was more than just a job but a calling to save humanity. Therefore, the recruits were expected to portray such traits and always be ready to be called into action due to the nature of work and the way disasters take place in the world without giving any warning like what happening now with (Covid-19).

In conclusion, My internship conducted at this facility during this period also enabled me to acquire knowledge and skills in the management of the blood donation sector. This is a vital sector in the healthcare system that should always be safeguarded to ensure that everything runs smoothly. In this regard, I have learned that the main role of the blood donor ambassadors is to ensure that there is the excellent provision of the enthusiastic services and improve customer experience on the management of the daily challenges that the facility might be facing in the process of discharging duties to the customers. The ambassador has also the role to ensure that the donor`s experience is always satisfactory to encourage the donor to live a healthy lifestyle and continue supporting the system over the years.

There is a lot that I have gained from my internship, I have gained skills, knowledge, and experience that useful in my future career and also in my personal life that I believe if out into right use I will be able to become a useful member of the society in future. Therefore, I would encourage any medical or any Health field student to always handle such events useful to help in acquiring the relevant information useful in their lives.

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