Name: Emily Ueberfluss
What other AHEC programs have you participated in? CHIP is my first AHEC program!
What’s your hometown? Kenosha, Wisconsin
What school are you attending? UW-Platteville
What is your intended profession/what’s your major? Physician/Biology Major with a heath science focus
Why do you want to be a health professional? Why is it important to you? I want to become a health professional because I want to know that I am making a positive difference.
e in the world. A lot of my role models growing up were friends and family who worked in the medical field. The impacts that they had not only on peoples health, but their lives as a whole has always been so inspiring to me. I am beyond excited to pursue a career that will not only challenge me intellectually, but also challenge me to grow as a human being.
Where is your Community Health Internship Program (CHIP) host site? Grant County Health Department
What are you doing there? My main focus throughout this internship was to assist with any COVID related needs the health department had. This includes things like managing COVID vaccine supplies, helping out at county run vaccination clinics, following up with test results and close contact cases, and heading any projects the public health staff would normally not have the time or resources for. However, COVID has slowed down significantly from earlier this year, which gave me time to explore other facets of the health department. This included shadowing other positions like home health nurses, Hospice CNA's, the county environmental health specialist, and even help with some WIC and MCH events.
Why did you want to participate in CHIP? I wanted to participate in CHIP to broaden my knowledge of public health and learn from those currently in the field. Participating in CHIP would allow me to accomplish this, while also benefiting my community and making direct impacts on those around me.
What's something you hope to learn/have learned that will impact your future work? One of the biggest things this internship has taught me was to never judge a person for the situation that they are in. It is so important to approach all patients and clients with the same mentality and quality of care. You never know what a person has been through and overcome before meeting you. I plan on continuing my education and becoming a physician, so this mindset will be vital to me for the entirety of my career.
What are you most looking forward to/what has been your favorite part so far? My favorite part so far, has been all of the shadowing I've gotten to do. Prior to this internship I was exactly sure what the responsibilities of health departments were. However, throughout the summer I have been fortunate enough to get to observe almost all of the facets. This included trips with home health nursing, hospice nursing, healthcare for the county jail, and environmental health.
What advice would you give to younger students who are interested in working in public health? I would definitely encourage any students considering healthcare and public health as a career to find as many shadowing opportunities as possible. Getting to experience hands on what these professionals do on a daily basis is a great way to find out what your passionate about. It also gives you the chance to make connections with those health professionals in your area and use them as a resource as you continue in your education.