Leading up to the start of my fellowship on June 1st and in the weeks since then, our country has gone through some tremendously difficult times. From the COVID-19 pandemic to the loss of George Floyd and multiple other Black lives, we have been challenged as a society to reflect, speak up, and take action. While many aspects of these recent events have been painful and there’s clearly much work to be done, I feel blessed to be a CAPS fellow during this time. To work with a not-for-profit organization that prioritizes social justice and serving its communities. And to be part of an incredible group of CAPS fellows with whom I get to reflect with each week. Additionally, I’ve found that I’m really enjoying my work and that it’s already informing the type of courses I’d like to take when I start my master’s degree in public health this fall. Now I’m sure you’re wondering, what exactly is my fellowship? This summer, I’m working at one of the sites of National Lutheran Communities & Services called The Village at Rockville. The Village at Rockville is a CCRC, or continuing care retirement community, meaning that it offers multiple levels of care to its residents. These levels of care include independent living, assisted living, and skilled nursing, among others.

As part of my objectives for this summer, I am exploring trends in the senior living industry such as the growing need for affordable housing and the increasing desire for independent living units and high-end services. As someone who is entirely new to the senior living industry, I’m loving learning about everything from terminology to Medicaid/Medicare to how to create a master plan. This fellowship has not come without challenges, however. For one, I did not expect that it would be so difficult to adjust to a typical 9a-5p schedule. In addition, there have been times where I feel silly on a call because I don’t know an acronym (apparently SNFs means skilled nursing facilities) or when I’ve found myself frustrated by the complexity of health insurance and healthcare regulations. Further, at times, I’ve found it challenging to communicate effectively. That being said, I know this fellowship is and will continue to be an excellent opportunity for growth. This is my first time doing remote work, but I’m positive it won’t be my last. Thus, learning how to schedule my day, communicate through video conferencing platforms, and collaborate from a distance is of utmost importance. In the coming weeks, I’ve challenged myself to reflect deeply on how I communicate- both during this fellowship and in my personal life. Do I really listen? Have I asked fellow employees how they prefer to communicate? Are there creative ways I can overcome communication barriers? So far, I’ve decided that it’s beneficial to be assertive and to ask any and all questions, even if it feels uncomfortable. For example, during a call this past week, I felt unclear about my role in creating a master plan. I vocalized this and asked my supervisor how I could be most helpful, suggesting a few different options. As a result, I walked away from the call having a much better idea of the focus of my research in the next week. While I anticipate that there will be more challenges, I welcome them and look forward to learning from them. As a final note, I’ve also had the chance to meet with a variety of team members at The Village, and I really look forward to working with them, my supervisor, and the other Valpo student at my site, Kiera Pratt.

Until next time,

Christy