Rady Children Hospital's FACES for the Future Program Partners with Central Region Public Health Clinic

HHSA Central Region Public Health Center Public Health Nurse Shala Abtahi-Sepah (center, back row in red shirt) and Manager Bonnie Copland (second from right in light blue shirt) worked with FACES program students at the Public Health Center.The Faces for the Future Program, a joint project between Hoover High School and Rady Children's Hospital, provides 44 qualifying high school juniors and seniors the opportunity to participate in clinical rotations at the hospital and another rotation with a partnering organization in City Heights. 

The County of San Diego’s Health and Human Services Agency’s (HHSA) Central Region Public Health Center is one of those partnering organizations. Along with our community partners City Heights Wellness Center, Champions for Change, La Maestra Clinic, Feeding America, the City Heights Farmers’ Market, Mid-City Community Advocacy Network, and Sports Injury Prevention at Hoover, students are given the opportunity to learn about patient advocacy, and access to healthcare resources and careers as well as community advocacy.

Central Region Public Health Center staff has been providing the learning experience to two different groups of Faces students since December, 2010.  These students participated in a variety of clinical activities, learned about the clinic flow, observed the immunization clinic and gained insight into the HHSA’s organization and activities. They also learned about chronic illnesses and had the opportunity to meet with community professionals and medical students.  A public health nurse working with the students described them as “extremely polite, respectful and willing to learn”.

When asked to describe her experience at the Central Region Public Health Center, one of the participating students replied that it was a “positive” experience and that the staff was “friendly".