About
Ariel Herm ’10
Fixing the Health Care System from the Ground Up, Improving People’s Lives before Policy Does
I will be working at Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center in North Brooklyn, NY. I will be working as a Community Health Worker assisting in two departments at the hospital. The hospital’s Asthma Care Program and it’s new Chronic Illness Demonstration Project which is aimed at frequently hospitalized patients and trying to keep them healthy and out of the hospital. The Chronic Illness Demonstration Project utilizes a new model approach to health care using Community Health Workers or Community Liaison Workers, advanced information systems, social workers and physicians. The program will be a collaborative effort between Woodhull and two other municipal hospitals (Bellevue Hospital and Elmhurst Hospital Center).
As a Community Health Worker (CHW) I will help members of the community the hospital serves to gain access to the health care and attention they desperately need from their doctors. I will also promote healthy lifestyles among families. My efforts will include helping patients navigate the sometimes confusing insurance systems, aiding them in their interactions with medical professionals, assisting them in understanding proposed courses of treatment, and helping reduce unnecessary expenses to the medical system by making treatment more efficient. My recently acquired fluency in Spanish will be invaluable in these endeavors.
I am a pre-med student at Haverford, majoring in history and minoring in Spanish. I have a strong interest in community service no matter what career path I choose. I am deeply invested in becoming a doctor specializing in neo-natal pediatric care or obstetrics/gynecology. I remain committed to working in the public sector as a doctor and serving the nation’s neediest patients. Working as a Community Health Worker at Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center in North Brooklyn I will obtain valuable professional experience and at the same time give back to the hospital, its clients and staff. Helping to contribute to the improvement of patient care at Woodhull will provide me with an understanding and respect for both sides of the health care system: the patients’ needs and the doctors’ practice.