After a week of interning at the Esperanza Center, I knew that it was the perfect fit for
me. I say that not only as a pre‐med student or as a Spanish speaker, but as a member
of an immigrant family. Coming from that background made the experience all the
more personal to me and drove me to work harder every day. The patients that come
to the clinic are all undocumented and uninsured, so to be in that situation and have a
health concern, it can be very nerve‐wracking for them. The amazing thing about the
Esperanza Center, however, is the commitment everyone there has to helping this
community whether they are a paid employee or simply a volunteer. To be in an
environment where it’s not all about the medicine but about helping the patient in
whatever way possible, it really made going to work every day a lot better. My
supervisor also had me on a rotation schedule so that I could be exposed to every part
of the clinic. For example, Mondays and Tuesdays were front desk duty, Wednesdays I
spent with the nurse, Thursdays with the TAP referral program and Fridays were a
kind of free‐for‐all. While at first it was difficult, by the end of it I was running all over
the clinic, filling in where they needed me. This proved to be very useful since you
never knew what to expect. Some days dragged on while others were flew by and
sometimes unexpected things came up. In the end, all I knew was that in some way, I
would be making someone’s life a little easier – whether it be finding a handout on
carpal tunnel for the nurse to give out, dealing with being put on hold for forever to
make appointments for our patients, or just giving a little kid a sticker to distract her
since she’s scared to death of the blood pressure cuff. This internship has given me so
much that I can only hope to have done the same for them. ‐ Eileen
Community Partner: Esperanza Center
Intern: Eileen Ramirez
Site Supervisor: Bibi Hackshaw
What is Esperanza Center?
Our bilingual staff works with Hispanic and other immigrants to provide health
care, social services, referrals, employment counseling, English as a Second
Language (ESL) classes, and Immigration Legal Service (ILS).
Tasks:
• Assist the front desk administrator with qualifying
and discharging patients, organizing patient charts,
and answering phones
• Work with the nurse to triage patients ‐ taking
vitals, checking blood sugar levels, and/or
performing a urine analysis when needed
• Make appointments for patients to be seen by
specialists at Hopkins under the clinic outreach
coordinator/TAP navigator
• Create fliers for school physicals and flu shots as
well as handouts for patients to learn more
information about certain diseases or conditions
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