Sarah Pace

5/13 9:00-2:00 (5 hours) 5/16 10:00-3:00 (5 hours) Total: 20 hours

5/14 10:00-4:00 (6 hours) 5/17 11:00-3:00 (4 hours)
I began my internship at Coliseum Medical Centers on Monday, May 13th. This day

served as somewhat of a final interview day. Ms.Franchetta, my supervisor, used this as an

opportunity to take me through the hospital on a tour, and go over in depth as to what my role as

one of the patient relations interns would be. Some of the topics that we discussed included:

dress code, day to day tasks, interacting with patients, and our hours. I learned a great deal about

what Ms.Franchetta’s work day looks like. In addition, to taking me through the hospital, she

took the time to ask me about what I look to get out of this internship. I feel very comfortable

learning from her and look forward to the opportunities to come.

On Tuesday, I spent a great deal of time in Macon at two different locations. One location

was Macon Occupational Medicine. This is where I received my physical assessment. In addition

to paper work, I was required to complete a fit test, blood tests, and urine tests. Working at

Coliseum Medical Centers is contingent upon passing a physical assessment at Macon

Occupational Medicine. Thankfully, I passed! Next, I spent time at the employee health office at

Coliseum Medical Centers. Here, I was required to present a nurse with my immunization

records, and also complete paperwork for Human Resources. Luckily, all of my vaccines are up

to date and I did not need to receive any that day. However, this was a timely process as it was

practically another physical assessment.

Thursday was the first day that all four patient relations interns were at the hospital at the

same time. We were able to begin discussing our roles and our thoughts about

assignments/projects. In addition, we spent a majority of our time going through research and

binders/portfolios from interns in the past. This was extremely helpful in terms of what was
expected. Our symposium this year will be focused on Palliative Care so Ms.Franchetta spent a

great deal of time speaking with us on this subject.

On Friday I began researching topics that are related to the symposium topic, Palliative

Care. Each of the interns are beginning to decide what areas they are more suited to be in charge

of. It is clear that this is going to be a group effort and will require a great deal of patience.

However, I look forward to making progress on this project and working alongside these ladies.

5/20 6:30-3:30 (9 hours) 5/22 10:00-4:00 (6 hours) 5/24 10:00-3:00 (5 hours)

5/21 10:00-3:00 (5 hours) 5/23 10:00-3:00 (5 hours) Hours this week: 30
Total hours: 50 hours
On Monday, May 20th, the other interns and I attended the new employee orientation for

Coliseum Medical Centers. Orientation took place at Coliseum Northside Hospital in Macon, Ga.

The day began with an introduction of the executives of the hospital. Personally, this portion was

the most interesting to me because I have thought about pursuing a master’s degree in hospital

administration. The administrators lectured us on how they have chosen to run their hospital and

what makes them so successful. The 3 shared values of Coliseum are: ownership, compassion,

and excellence. In addition, they have created an acronym for how to guide employee

interactions with patients: AIDET, acknowledge, introduce, duration, explanation, thank you.

This lecture was particularly helpful because I will be interacting with patients and their families

on a daily basis. All in all, although orientation was a little exhausting, it was essential for us to

move forward with our internship.

On Tuesday, our supervisor Ms.Franchetta took us through the ICU for an orientation and

debrief. Our area of work includes the ICU as well as the CVICU. This is a pretty extensive

portion of the 2nd floor of the hospital and it is essential for us to be comfortable in terms of
navigation. Also, there are areas on the floor where we receive keys and patient information, so

she showed us those places. In addition, we met more staff on the floor and spoke with them

about what day to day looks like in this department.

On Wednesday we spent majority of our time completing office work and doing research.

On this day we decided that our course presentation will take place at the symposium that the

patient relations department will host. The symposium and our project will be centered around

caregivers. Our focus ranges from caregivers in the U.S., Georgia, Middle Georgia, and in

comparison to Sweden.

On Thursday, in addition to our normal duties, we spent time learning about documenting

patient info. This was a guide of what to write, what to be concerned about, and how to follow

up. This information is crucial as we move into our roles this upcoming week.

On Friday, we spent time finishing up tasks from the week. We began working on some

brochures and pamphlets for the symposium. Also, we continued our research on each of our

topics. In addition, we began learning medical terminology that is necessary to know as we

round on patients every day. This ensures that we have an understanding as to what is going on

with the patient so that we can better serve them and their families.

5/27, 9:00-4:00 (7 hrs) 5/30, 9:00-5:00 (8 hrs) Hours this week: 40

5/28, 10:00-4:00 (6 hrs) 5/31, 10:00-4:00 (6 hrs) Hours total: 90
5/29, 10:00-5:00 (7 hrs) 6/2, 8:00-2:00 (6 hrs)
Over the Memorial Day holiday, our supervisor Ms.Franchetta assigned us with a few

tasks to complete for the day. My first task was to create posters to remind us of tasks to post in

the office. I created these posters using Word, printed them out, and laminated them. Then I

proceeded to work on my assigned research project. My topic is on caregivers in Georgia, so this

is a very broad subject which has yielded a great deal of information. I spent most of the day on

Galileo and Google Scholar, searching for credible information.

On Tuesday, the four interns met outside of the hospital because our supervisor was

undergoing surgery on her wisdom teeth. During our work period, we spent time delegating

some of the tasks that Franchetta assigned us. This included typing up information that we need

to correct from previous years, typing up medical terminology that we are responsible for

learning, and several other tasks that relate to our symposium. The other interns trusted me to

look into improving and revamping the brochure that we will use at the symposium. I will not be

completing this task alone; however I am taking a lead on this task.

For the remainder of the week, most of our work was focused on research. Research is

not one of my areas of expertise, so I am encouraged to use this project and symposium as a time

to strengthen my knowledge and skills. I am working on organizing information and citations. In

addition, I tested out many different computer programs that we can create flyers and brochures

on. I finally found a program that I believe is the most organized, and professional. Also, this

program allows each of us to share projects with one another so that we can work

collaboratively. The four of us really worked hard this week on improving the promotional

materials that were used in previous years because they are very outdated.

06/03, 8:00-4:00 (8 hrs) 06/06, 8:00-5:00 (9 hrs) This week: 50

06/04, 7:00-5:00 (10 hrs) 06/07, 8:00-3:00 (7 hrs)
06/05, 8:00-5:00 (9 hrs) 06/08, 10:00-5:00 (7 hrs) Total hours: 140
On Monday of this week, we reconvened on the topic and content of our project. Our

supervisor made the decision to not do a symposium this summer. This means that our project

for this course will be changing slightly. Instead of presenting information at a symposium, we

will each spend 5 minutes presenting at a caregiver support group. Soon we will divide topic
among the four interns which will determine what we will present at the support group. This

small presentation will be an aspect of our larger presentation for this course. In addition to

working on our presentation content, we completed other office duties on Monday.

On Tuesday we finally hit the ground running. We began with rounds in the morning

alongside a team of nurses, PAs, doctors, and other hospital staff. During multidisciplinary

rounds interns take notes on the patient’ condition, treatment changes, family status, and any

other information that is important. Rounds are where the patient relations team can receive

insight into the care plan for the patient and the support system. In addition, this allows us to take

note of families that we might need to pay special attention to and check on later. This day was

very hectic because two patients were also undergoing heart surgery. For operations, the patient

relations team is in charge of checking on the patient’s condition throughout the operation as

well as acting as a mediator for the family. Once assigned to a surgical case, I am responsible for

tracking the progress and orienting the families as to where the patient will go following surgery,

and who the nursing staff will be. All of these tasks require a great deal of time and are also

followed by a considerable amount of paperwork. However, I really enjoy the social aspect of

orienting patients and families.

For the remainder of the week the interns got into the routine of rounds with care team,

patient relations rounds, surgical cases, and office work to follow. These days are long, but they

are rewarding. I am thankful for our supervisor for walking us through each process while also

giving us a great deal of freedom to complete tasks independently. This way we are gaining

experience and learning a considerable amount of information. Over the weekend, the interns

met and continued to work on our project. Research and other tasks were pushed aside this week
due to the hectic schedule at the hospital. Thankfully our schedules allowed us all to meet over

the weekend and therefore we were able to catch up on our work.

06/10, 8:00-5:00 (9 hrs) 06/13, 8:00-5:00 (9 hrs) This week: 50

06/11, 8:00-4:00 (8 hrs) 06/14, 8:00-5:00 (9 hrs)
06/12, 7:00-5:00 (10 hrs) 06/15, 9:00-2:00 (5 hrs) Total hours: 190

This week was the longest work week yet. Each day, we began with multidisciplinary

rounds. These rounds lasted longer than they typically do because there are more patients in the

ICU/CVICU. Rounds lasted at least two hours every day, sometimes they were even longer. At

rounds the Patient Relations interns have to pay close attention to what the upcoming treatment

plan is for the patients. In addition, the interns must take note of the family and support system

that is present with the patient. Many patients do not have stable family situations and in that

case the attending doctor will call upon the Patient Relations team to come and mediate with the

family. In addition, many of the patients this week were in critical condition. Several of the

family members have been put in a position where they have to make life or death situations for

their loved one who is unable to make those important decisions. These are terrible

circumstances, and during rounds our team takes note of what families need specific attention for

this reason. We round on them several times throughout the day doing anything that we can for

them in order to make them more comfortable. However, this has been difficult because we can

only do so much. Unfortunately, we do not have any power in restoring their loved one’s health.

This has been increasingly difficult to realize this week. In addition to checking on patients and

families, we round in the waiting rooms of the hospitals. In addition, there were several heart

surgeries that we were assigned to this week. Each intern is assigned a case in order to orient

their family. These are assignments that last the entire work day, which is why most of our days

were long. We have to stay up to date on the patient’s status pre-op, during the operation, and
post-op. Meanwhile we orient the families on their condition, what is to come, and a

considerable amount of paperwork.

In addition to our hospital duties, we worked a considerable amount on our project this

week. The vision for our project has been redirected from a symposium to conducting a caregiver

grief support group. Caregivers face a great deal of challenges and deserve support. Our support

group is scheduled for July 29th. Due to the hectic schedule at the hospital we were only able to

work in increments on these duties towards the end of the work day. Therefore, we decided to

meet again on Saturday for a few hours to catch up. Our supervisor Ms.Franchetta encourages

working from home in order to get extra hours and get ahead. When we work outside of the

office on the weekends, we send her our work. This is beneficial because during the work week

we can focus primarily on Patient Relations duties in order to get the most out of this

experience.

06/17, 7:00-5:00 (10 hrs) 06/20, 8:00-5:00 (9 hrs) This week: 50

06/18, 8:00-4:00 (8 hrs) 06/21, 8:00-5:00 (9 hrs)
06/19, 8:00-5:00 (9 hrs) 06/22, 9:00-2:00 (5 hrs) Total hours: 240

The week of June the 17th was a busy one for the interns at Coliseum Medical Centers.

On Monday we were presented with a different care team than the one that we have become

accustomed to. There was a new attending, new pharmacists, and a few different nurses on the

floor. This is a reality of working in the hospital environment, staffing is irregular due to long

hours. Therefore, we had to adapt and become acquainted to a different style of multidisciplinary

rounds. This showed me that it is important for the care team to all be on the same page and

work together towards the common goal of patient care. As we were all discussing about the

condition of our patients, a patient down the hall coded. Rounds were put on halt as the medical

staff rushed into Room 19 to intervene with life saving measures. This was the most urgent
situation that I have been witness to thus far. I felt a little uneasy seeing the man being shocked,

and nearing so close to death.

On Tuesday, we were with the same team and completed rounds without any

complications. There were a few patients that the case manager was having difficulty with

transferring them. We spent some time discussing their financial and family situation with the

case manager. I learned a great deal on this day about the realities of individuals that are insured

through organizations like medicaid.

On Wednesday we began with rounds, along with the rest of the care team. Following

rounds, the Patient Relations team had a short amount of time to prepare for a student to come in

for an interview and tour. Ms.Franchetta requested that the interns go through our daily tasks

with her, walk her through the units, walk her through the hospital, and take her to lunch. The

meeting went well, and this is how we spent the majority of our day. Luckily, interns from the

past have created binders that are very informative in regard to our position. Therefore, we spent

a great deal of time sharing those with the student and it was less overwhelming.

Thursday and Friday were days spent in the unit for the majority of the time. Surgeries

began to pick up and I was exposed to more clinical scenarios. Sadly, this furthers my belief that

I do not think I am meant to pursue a career in nursing. However, I am so grateful for this

internship because I am in the exact environment that I need to be in order to better direct my

future career path. In addition, I am learning about so many other roles that individuals play in a

hospital and how they are all important. Although the days working in a hospital are long, our

supervisor makes sure that we are okay and are not overworked. She understands that we need

many hours for this course and continues to engage us in this work environment. This week we
also did some housekeeping tasks for Ms.Franchetta when the unit slowed down. Being that part

of our role is office work, it is essential to remain organized.

In addition, the interns have found it helpful to spend most of our time working on our

projects on the weekend. This is beneficial because we can be more present on the unit during

the week. It is best for us to work together because otherwise things get confused. Thankfully,

we are all close to one another and it has been easy to spend our Saturdays working on our

caregiver support group. In addition, we are all beginning to work on our weebly accounts.

06/24, 7:00-3:00 (8 hrs) 06/27, 8:00-5:00 (5 hrs) This week: 35

06/25, 8:00-5:00 (7 hrs) 06/28, 8:00-4:00 (3 hrs)
06/26, 8:00-5:00 (7 hrs) 06/29, 10:00-12:00 (5 hrs) Total hours: 320

Monday of this week began like any other week. The routine of interdisciplinary rounds

followed by meetings and more rounds continued. However, there was a different attending in

the ICU/CVICU once again. This week, Dr.Wright, conducts rounds and carries out duties in a

different way than the other attendings that we have worked with thus far. This is another

instance where I am learning to be flexible and adaptable. In addition, I am learning a great deal

about bedside manner. The attending that we worked with this week is extremely blunt and I can

tell that some families do not respond well to this form of communication. Particularly in a

critical care situation.

On Tuesday of this week we began the day with our normal routine. In addition, the

interns conducted rounds in the waiting rooms on the second floor of Coliseum. Spending time

with patients and their families takes up a majority of our days. This is because majority of the

time we have to relay questions to nurses or physicians that are assigned to a certain patient. The
reality is that I do not have any clinical privileges and therefore I have to communicate with the

clinical staff when working with patients.

On Wednesday interdisciplinary rounds went smoothly. I was humbled when a patient’s

daughter took the time to acknowledge our team. She expressed her gratitude to us for our

continued efforts towards her father’s condition. In addition, she noted that she is from Atlanta

and has never observed a team atmosphere similar to our care team. We all felt uplifted and

encouraged by her words. I can really tell that the clinical staff is very dedicated to each and

every patient.

On Thursday and Friday of this week we continued with our normal interdisciplinary

rounds. Upon visiting the waiting rooms and speaking with families, there was a specific group

that needed support during a difficult time. I spent some time sitting with them and could tell that

they were particularly emotional. This was the first time that I was in a very tense and emotional

scenario and I used my grief support skills. I could also tell that they were appreciative of my

gentle attention.

In addition, the interns continued with our weekly routine and met on Saturday. Our

supervisor Ms.Franchetta wants to be presented with more progress on our caretaker support

group on Monday. Therefore, we spent a great deal of time observing other successful caretaker

support group plans on the internet. This helped us get a gage for the topics to include in our

support group. We have a PowerPoint to present to Ms.Franchetta on Monday of next week.

07/01, 8:00-4:00 (8 hrs) 07/05, 9:00-3:00 (6 hrs) This week: 35

07/02, 8:00-3:00 (7 hrs) 07/06, 10:00-1:00 (3 hrs)
07/03, 9:00-4:00 (7 hrs) 07/07, 10:00-2:00 (4 hrs) Total hours: 320

Monday of this week began similar to every other week, with multidisciplinary rounds.

However, this week the original ICU doctor returned to the unit. The interns and I really enjoy
working alongside him and it is obvious that the rest of the care team feels the same way. Dr. K

is very intelligent, takes great care of his patients, and is an excellent teacher. Although I do not

plan on pursuing a clinical career per say, I learn things from him each day. Ms. Franchetta has

explained to us how important learning the basic clinical knowledge when working in a hospital,

regardless of your position. This helps us interact with the patients by being completely aware of

their medical conditions.

Rounds on Tuesday were fairly short. Ms. Franchetta explained to us that things are

usually slow during the summer. Even staffing was low due to the holiday. In addition, there

were no surgery cases that we were expected to follow. This makes for a fairly slow day in the

office. However, Ms. Fran had another student from Georgia College come to Coliseum for an

interview/tour. When this happens, the student follows us through our daily activities in order to

determine if this internship is a fit for them. This took up most of the day

Wednesday, the interns spent time on putting actual information onto our grief support

group PowerPoint. We decided on what information to make virtual and what information should

be distributed on a handout for the participants. The time for our grief support group is nearing

and we are becoming more aware of the work that we still have left to do. Ms. Franchetta has

been spending a great deal of time working with us on how to properly grief counsel.

On Friday, I spent most of the day working on my individual work. In addition, I have

began spending time creating my weebly account. I have never created a website before, so this

has been slightly difficult for me. However, I think that this will be a great skill to have moving

forward into the work world.

The interns and I met on the weekend briefly due to the slow nature of this week. We

realized that we needed to catch up on some tasks. I feel more prepared heading into this week
but the semester is becoming quite hectic. However, we are all hard workers and I feel confident

that we will pull through.

07/08, 8:00-4:00 (8 hrs) 07/11, 9:00-3:00 (6 hrs) This week: 40

07/09, 8:00-3:00 (7 hrs) 07/12, 9:00-3:00 (6 hrs)
07/10, 8:00-4:00 (8 hrs) 07/13, 9:00-2:00 (5 hrs) Total hours: 360
This week began with multidisciplinary rounds once again. On Monday, the

physician was running behind, and rounds began later. I have come to realize that many times in

the hospital setting, if you are not a person of high authority, others do not respect you as much.

Sometimes I feel like my role at Coliseum is not of high value. This furthers me into the thought

process of continuing my education and pursuing a master’s degree.

On Tuesday, the waiting and patient rooms began to pick up. The interns spent more time

with the families in the waiting rooms tending to their needs. I am learning how to communicate

efficiently with clinical staff in regard to questions that family members might have. This makes

the patients and families feel like their needs are being prioritized and that the staff is tending to

them quickly. In addition, our supervisor was preparing for a really big meeting with corporate.

She needed our insight on some improvements that she was going to present at the meeting. We

assisted Ms.Franchetta with brainstorming and completing her draft for the meeting.

On Wednesday, after we completed rounds with the care team, we spent time with

families in the waiting room. There was one surgery scheduled on Wednesday. However we had

some free time in the office and so we helped Ms.Franchetta type up some flyers and different

documents that needed to be completed. I have helped in creating several flyers and brochures on

Word and feel much more proficient in this area. I am encouraged by my progress in this area

because I feel confident that this is a skill that will help me as I move forward into a career.
 On Thursday and Friday, we spent time in the office after completing rounds in the units

in the morning. There was one surgery on Thursday, and I spent most of the day orienting the

family of the surgical patient. This means that I spent time with them in the waiting room

answering their questions and tending to any needs that I could. In addition, I go over paperwork

with them and hospital rules and regulations. In addition, families are able to come back into the

unit while their loved one is still in surgery. During this time, they get a preview of which room

the patient will be taken to and who their nurse will be. This makes families feel much more

comfortable and at ease during what is a very nerve-wracking time.

On Saturday the interns met because we are becoming overwhelmed with the amount of

work that we have to do in the next few weeks. There is a lot to do for Coliseum but also for this

course. In particular, our main focus right now is working on the presentation for this course.

7/15, 9:00-4:00 (7 hrs) 7/18, 9:00-5:00 (8 hrs) Hours this week: 40

7/16, 10:00-4:00 (6 hrs) 7/19, 10:00-4:00 (6 hrs) Hours total: 400
7/17, 8:00-3:00 (7 hrs) 7/20, 8:00-2:00 (6 hrs)
It is crazy to think that this course is almost over. While we were very busy this week, I

tried to keep in mind that I need to give it my all being that we only have two weeks left. On

Monday, we hit the ground running. Multidisciplinary rounds ran a little long today and the unit

was quite busy. This means that we had many families to check on and provide support for. In

addition, there were two cardiac surgeries scheduled on Monday. This means that we were

responsible for following the cases throughout the day and orienting families. After work, the

other interns and I went to our regular coffee shop and completed the outline for our

presentation. At that point we assigned aspects of our project to one another.

On Tuesday, we completed rounds and then rounded in the unit and the waiting rooms. In

the waiting rooms I had some families ask me a few questions that I needed to confirm with a
nurse. It is nice to know that majority of the nursing staff is very accommodating to us. After

lunch, Ms.Franchetta had some documents and emails that she needed assistance with. She

appreciates our help and insight very much. In addition, helping her with side projects makes me

feel even more valuable as an intern.

Wednesday was a little slower in the unit. However, there was a surgery scheduled and I

oriented a family. Being that the unit was fairly slow, we had more time to work in the office. On

Wednesday the other interns and I talked about how we have learned a great deal about time

management this summer. I have realized that I have done a poor job of time management

outside of work. In terms of my personal health, I have been so tired from work I haven’t found

the energy to grocery shop regularly, work out regularly, do all of the things that are required of

an adult. I am realizing that everyone practically works eight-hour days and there will always be

responsibilities outside of work. This is something I want to improve on for the remainder of the

two week and as I move into a career.

Thursday and Friday of this week were very similar. After rounds we talked with Ms.

Franchetta about the status of patients in the unit. Then we spoke about our grief support group

and the expectations that she has. After lunch we would work on our project and other

assignments for this course. The interns and I designated Saturday to meet and work on our

presentation. We really wanted to meet and get it completed for the most part because we want to

focus on our grief support group coming up. I am glad that we met on Saturday to finish our

presentation.
7/22, 8:00-4:00 (8 hrs) 7/25, 8:00-4:30 (8.5 hrs) Hours this week: 40
7/23, 8:00-4:30 (8.5 hrs) 7/26, 9:00-4:00 (7 hrs) Hours total: 440
7/24, 8:00-4:00 (8 hrs)
This week was very hectic. Monday rounds were typical for our unit. There are many
elderly patients in the unit right now. Once again, we are realizing that the unit can be slow
during the summer because people put off their health issues due to engagements and their
schedule. The interns and I spoke a great deal on Monday about our plans after the internship is
over. Many of us are considering going back to school.
On Tuesday I took really good notes in order to better interact with our patients. I want to
be aware of the most relevant and important information. In addition, I am learning more about
interacting appropriately with those that are outside of my department. Many times, in a work
setting you will have to team up with a group that might not be directly in your line of work. I
think in those situations it is important to treat the other group with the utmost respect because
their contributions matter as well. Both parties are moving towards the same goal. Unfortunately,
I have realized that Chaplaincy services and similar departments do not always receive the
respect that they deserve.
After rounds on Wednesday I had some free time to work on assignments for this class.
Most of my weebly was not constructed until this week. I appreciate the weebly assignment
because I feel this will be a beneficial source to present to future employers. Building a website
from scratch requires some technical skill. I am much better with technology after this internship
and after creating my website. In addition, it is helpful to be creating this website along three
other interns. Oftentimes we help one another and offer each other advice on creating the
content. Also, because we worked on most all of our projects together this summer most aspects
of our weebly are very similar.
On Thursday rounds continued for a fairly long time. I can appreciate when the attending
doctor is very thorough with patients and their families. This makes families feel much more
seen and important. On this day I completed some tasks for Ms. Franchetta and spent some time
organizing our office. While working on our project and presentation we have pulled from many
resources around the office, so I took the time to make sure everything was back in place on
Thursday.
 Friday was another fairly slow day at Coliseum. After multidisciplinary rounds we
rounded in the unit and in the waiting room. Occasionally some families might ask for some
water or coffee. Even extending some refreshments and a smile makes a noticeable difference in
their experience at Coliseum. After we completed our work for Ms. Franchetta, we had a decent
amount of time to work on the content for our grief support group. In this case I have learned to
be flexible, because there have been some changes over the summer in this area. In addition, we
spent time working on our final presentation which we will present next week.