Lauren Skow

Responsibilities

As Obria's Patient Outreach Coordinator, I work on developing methods to not only promote Obria and its services but to promote overall health and well-being within the Ames community. I create informational flyers for patient and donor use, assist with creating and promoting events, and work on other community outreach projects. I am in charge of checking patients in, answering phones, scheduling, and developing methods to promote health in and out of the clinic.

Accomplishments

Since starting here in January, I have grown in my communication and leadership skills. This internship has stretched me to think outside the box as I have had to come up with ways to promote reproductive health and Obria's services. There is such a need for education on these issues and a need for what Obria has to provide, but not many people know about us! To further promote health on campus and reach students, I created a student organization 'Students for Obria' which is in the process of SORB approval. I am very excited about this particular project as it has so much potential to help students on campus! I wrote a grant for Greater Iowa Credit Union and worked on several other outreach projects.

Learning experience

Obria is fairly new to Ames (2020). Since being here, I have heard about the hard work the staff has put into the clinic and have seen how their persistence is paying off. Because of their examples and some of my experiences so far, I have learned that hard work and persistence pay off and are well worth the effort.

What advice would you give?

To any future students, make an effort to connect with your coworkers and patients. Your job (and life in general) is so much more enjoyable when you focus on those around you rather than yourself. Instead of worrying about looking/performing a certain way, being caught up in your schedule, etc., think about how you can do your job well and best serve those around you. I have found that caring about others reaps a lot more joy!