A Panel Discussion with Health Sciences and Public Services
By Adrienne Hellinger, RRT-ACCS
WSCO Director of Respiratory Therapy
ahellinger@wscc.edu
On Thursday, October 26 at 5:30 p.m. in Graham Auditorium, Washington State College of Ohio will unite programs from across campus to discuss a topic relevant not only to students enrolled in one of our healthcare programs but also to those in or public services: The Safe and Ethical Care for Incarcerated Patients. This collaborative effort will increase awareness and prepare our students from these programs for a situation that they will likely encounter after they transition into their chosen profession.
Why should I attend?
Other than collaboration and modeling best practices, the true reason I’m excited is that I know you’re going to learn something from this discussion. As I said before, each panel member has cared for or worked with incarcerated patients. When we met earlier this semester to brainstorm and determine the direction of this conversation, we found we were still learning new things from one another. There are key areas of patient care I had not considered and didn’t know about before the faculty meeting, and I was in the field for 15 years. As the saying goes, “We don’t know what we don’t know,” and the flip side of the coin can have valuable insights!
Why a panel discussion?
Students can easily become segregated within their degree programs and often don’t see or interact with students in other disciplines on campus. This is concerning since we’re training our students to be active and involved community members, and many will work together in this community after graduation. I asked myself how the faculty could model the connection and communication we want for our students. One of the more achievable options was panel discussions on topics that reach across programs, and I’m excited to report that other faculty were excited to collaborate and get the ball rolling!
What will we actually talk about?
Our first panel will focus on scenarios in which prisoners are accompanied by guards to receive medical treatment and will include input from the criminal justice, social services programs, and several health sciences. We have a distinguished panel of faculty members who will delve into various aspects of patient and provider safety, as well as the ethical challenges that arise in this context. Each panel member has cared for or worked with incarcerated patients and has unique perspectives on aspects of care specific to their discipline.
Who should attend?
This is a free event that’s open to the public. While many will benefit from attending this panel discussion, our students and faculty involved in public service programs such as criminal justice and social services, and health sciences programs such as nursing, radiology, and respiratory therapy may be the most interested.
When and Where will the event occur?
October 26th, 5:30 pm in the Graham Auditorium.
I’m excited to share with you all as we continue the work of becoming better providers, practitioners, and collaborators in our chosen fields.
