Sarah Smith

With the Ozarks Literacy Council, I provide free, one-on-one tutoring to a child struggling with reading. Each week I create a lesson plan and spend an hour with my student reading and writing.
The Ozarks Literacy Council has been an excellent place to volunteer, and has taught me that I really enjoy working with children and the energy that they bring. Seeing my kiddo is a highlight in my week.

I do many different tasks as a Unit Assistant. I'm assigned to a unit at the beginning of each shift. Once I'm on the unit I check with the charge nurse to see which tasks will be most helpful to complete. My tasks can be broken into three categories: patient care, unit maintenance, and errands.
Patient care tasks are: assisting with incontinent care, readjusting the patient in bed, assisting with patient walks in the hallway, refilling drinks, helping feed patients, helping transfer patient from transport cart to bed, helping transport patient from bed to chair, helping patients to the restroom, helping patients with a washcloth bath, helping brush teeth, clean dentures, answering call lights, and many more.
Unit maintenance tasks are: restocking gloves and gowns in the hallway caddies, cleaning utility rooms, emptying patient trash cans and hampers, cleaning unit kitchens, cleaning dirty medical equipment (telemetry monitors, IV pumps, IV poles, telemetry leads, SCD pumps, etc.), cleaning patient food trays, cleaning nursing station computers, creating patient welcome kits, creating or breaking down patient charts, clearing cluttered hallways, and many more.
Errand tasks are: transporting specimens to laboratory, or picking up specimen containers from laboratory, picking up patient belongings from the front desk, picking up valuables from the cashier's office or security, transporting patients downstairs for discharge, and many more.
My job as a Unit Assistant is very varied, and I have learned an unimaginable amount about the medical field in my two years with CoxHealth. Above all, my favorite part of my job as a Unit Assistant is the bond I am able to make with each patient, and ensuring them that they are cared for.

Working as a carhop I was responsible for taking orders; making drinks; making ice cream; placing food, drinks, and ice cream on the tray; and then hopping the tray to the customer. When talking with the customer I was responsible for handling money and giving correct change.
Working as a cook I was responsible for making multiple food items at one time. There were four main stations and I was proficient at each station.
My favorite part of working at Sonic was either making ice cream or assembling hamburgers. Those two tasks were the more creative things I did at the job.