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Amelia Goff

Project Coordinator

RCHN Community Health Foundation

http://www.rchnfoundation.org/

What was your role when you were an AmeriCorps member in Community HealthCorps?

“During my Community HealthCorps year of service, I worked in downtown Manhattan for the Institute for Family Health in the Maternal Department as the Prenatal Care Coordinator and volunteer doula (or birth support person). My primary role was to manage and coordinate the prenatal care program, including the group model of care “Centering Pregnancy”. I was also involved in many other levels of providing services to prenatal patients: analyzing data for research, providing health education and outreach to patients including teens in our school based health center, running a program for our patients-in-need to receive doula services free of charge and assisting in a site approval visit from our partners. I became very interested in building the prenatal resources we provided to the community and by the end of the year, helped to begin a free prenatal yoga series which started this fall. On a daily basis, I worked in a bustling team of residents, attending doctors, and nurses and loved seeing the inner-workings of how a busy community health center was run.”

What is your current job title / role / responsibilities?

“At the RCHN Community Health Foundation, a not-for-profit operating Foundation whose mission is to support and benefit the work of the more than 1,200 community health centers (CHCs) nationally, I am the Project Coordinator for Chronicles, a dynamic, multi-media website that aims to document the vibrant, varied and important stories of health centers across the country through a web-based portal of narratives, photographs, videos and other materials. I support the website through web management and outreach to staff of CHCs to encourage them to become involved in the project by creating their center’s narrative profile on the site. I am excited to be involved in this project, as it is an amazing tool that helps illustrate the breath of impact of CHCs that are serving more than 20 million people in all 50 states. Additionally, as the social media manager, I am working to help the Foundation prepare to launch pages on Facebook.

I am also very fortunate to be working with very accomplished colleagues in the areas of community health policy, as I learn about the state of health care through this lens. I was lucky to attend the National Association for Community Health Center’s conference, Community Health Institute (CHI), this past August, where I learned about the CHC role in health reform, and saw the amazing and diverse work of the larger CHC community.”

How do you use your Community HealthCorps experience in your current position?

“The Community HealthCorps year really pushed me to expand my program management and multi-tasking skills. This has informed my current responsibilities. I also describe my transition from the Institute to the Foundation as a micro-macro shift. Coming to the foundation after my experience working for a year in a FQHC (Federally Qualified Health Center) on the ground, gave me a great context to learn about the issues experienced by all centers across the U.S. As a Community HealthCorps member, I thrived working independently while problem solving to improve and build on current programs and interventions. The Community HealthCorps year drove me to think outside the box, and I’m excited to be in a new workplace which fosters this type of thinking.”

How did being in Community HealthCorps influence your decision to remain in the health field?

“Community HealthCorps provided a rich environment for an invaluable year of exploration. Prior to Community HealthCorps, I worked with an International Public Health NGO and learned about international health issues, but was also interested in increasing my understanding of domestic care and the American health care system. I learned so much by “doing” as a Community HealthCorps member. In the outpatient site for the Beth Israel Family Medicine Residency Program, I was constantly stimulated in the teaching environment, with access to weekly resident lectures and periodic trainings. I shadowed different types of providers and health professionals, from nurse midwives to social workers, to help clarify my career goals. I learned not only about the clinical aspects of caring for a community of patients hailing from all boroughs in the city, but also the barriers that prevent people from accessing the care that they deserve thereby fostering health disparities. The health center and its staff were constantly working to help patients overcome these barriers to access through interventions and programs and this staff that I worked alongside inspired me to continue working to support health care delivery for underserved populations. In the long term, I plan to go back to school to become a family nurse practitioner, and to obtain a master’s in public health focused in maternal child health, to continue serving the community.”

What was your greatest memory from being in Community HealthCorps?

“I think some of my most meaningful memories are from volunteering as a birth doula (or prenatal and labor support person) with the Institute’s patients. In particular, I made a strong connection working with a young couple to support them through having their first baby. It was quite an experience to see these teens take on the responsibilities of becoming a family, and I felt lucky to witness this huge step. I also discovered that the knowledge I shared with them wasn’t nearly as important as their need for someone to provide comforting, mothering support.

Not only was my role as Prenatal Care Coordinator educational, but my class of Community HealthCorps members and our amazing Program Coordinator, Nicki Fietzer, really made the whole experience. From the early fall when we bonded on an outward bound-type trip in Ramapo, New York, we became a tight-knit, Community HealthCorps “family”. We used to point out that we each came to the service year with very unique perspectives and experiences and that we embraced this and learned so much from one other. Of the 15 members in my group, 10 of us are still in the tri-state area and we have had a few get-together “reunions”. We are all working in some aspect of health care delivery, and it will be exciting to see where we all end up!”

If you could provide a message for those who are interested in the health field and are currently in the Community HealthCorps program, what would it be?

“I would say to absorb as much as you can. For me, it was as much the process of gaining experience organically, as it is was working actively to take advantage of all the opportunities for guidance, mentorship, and learning. Keep an open mind, but also keep pushing forward doing what drives you since the year goes by so quickly! Finally, you can learn so much from your fellow Community HealthCorps members who share similar passions and will often help you clarify your own goals and appreciate your own strengths and skills.”

Past Alumni Spotlights:

Rachael M. Wojnowicz

Senior Analyst, Health Care - U.S. Government Accountability Office (click here)

Patricia Dale, BA

Assistant Coordinator - Hudson River HealthCare, Inc. (click here)

Rebekah Gowler

Policy Analyst - Center for Health Equity & Social Justice at the Boston Public Health Commission (click here)

Are you a Community HealthCorps alumni who’s interested in being part of the

“Community HealthCorps Alumni Spotlight”? If so, please email us today!

Interested in serving another term of service?

On April 21, 2009, the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act was signed into law by President Barack Obama. This act represented the most sweeping expansion of national service since the Corporation for National and Community Service was created. One exciting part of this legislation that recently took effect allows members to serve multiple service terms that add up to the value of 2 full-time AmeriCorps education awards. This means that if you have previously served in Community HealthCorps you may be eligible for another term of service. For more information click here.

Important revisions have been made to the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award

If you have received your Segal AmeriCorps Education Award and have not used it, there’s some exciting news! Across the nation, 94 colleges and universities are now matching your award amount. To see the full list of participating schools, please click here.

To check your education award balance, simply log in to My AmeriCorps today!

Newsletter Archive: The Alumni Outlook

To view one of the past Alumni Outlook newsletters, click on a quarter name below. To sign up for the Alumni Outlook, let us know by filling out a Contact Us form here.