Bio 348--Health Professions Internship

(Not all internships are available every semester)

CLINICAL INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES (Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, Dentistry, Optometry, Podiatry)

ALLOPATHIC/OSTEOPATHIC

SHARP HOSPICECARE  and GROSSMONT HOSPICE  Fall and Spring semesters.

Hospice is a home care program which provides nursing, emotional, and spiritual care to the terminally ill patients in the home setting.  Interns will attend hospice training which is a 40 hour classroom experience.  They will then be given the opportunity of 20 hours of clinical experience in the home setting with a member of the hospice team.  If interested, contact the PPHA office early so we can connect you with the hospice and you can learn the dates of the training, which may occur before school starts. Hospices may require a year commitment.

DR. JANINE KASCH FAMILY PRACTICE (Ramona Office) - Fall and Spring semesters: 1 position for females only.

This internship permits female students to spend time in a private practice setting. Instead of rotating through different departments in a hospital, the student spends time with a family practitioner allowing close observation of the doctor/patient interaction.

SCRIPPS MERCY HOSPITAL--Fall and Spring semesters:  Click link for details

SCRIPPS GREEN HOSPITAL--Fall and Spring semesters:  Click link for details

UCSD DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE--Fall and Spring semesters

UCSD's Department of Emergency Medicine has a variety of research projects that undergraduates will become a part of through the new Research Associate Program. This program provides undergraduate students the opportunity to participate in "cutting edge" clinical research being performed in the UCSD Emergency Dept. Rather than serving as subjects, however, the students will work directly with ED faculty, residents, and medical students, assisting in patient enrollment and data collection. Additionally, students will have the opportunities to attend educational sessions held by the faculty on various current medical topics. Arrangements may be made to earn up to 3 Cr/NCr units for this particular internship only. Requires a commitment of 100 hours and six months of service.

STUDENT HEALTH SERVICES (CAMPUS) - Fall and Spring semesters: 2 positions.

This internship provides a broad exposure to the activities of a busy outpatient ambulatory healthcare clinic.
The intern will be assigned to follow a variety of doctors and nurse practitioners and directly observe
their interaction with patients.  In addition, the intern will spend time observing the activities of the Radiology
Department, Health Promotion Department, Urgent Care and Laboratory.  Opportunities exist to further
explore specialty areas such as orthopedics, dermatology, optometry, osteopathic manipulation and acupuncture.

LA MAESTRA COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS--Fall and Spring semesters

Located on El Cajon Blvd and Fairmount Avenue, near SDSU, the clinic is very diverse in terms of the staff and patients. The majority of the patients are Hispanic, Somali, and Sudanese. They have pediatrics, general medicine, optometry, and Ob/Gyn departments. Their philosophy is the Circle of Care which means they strive to provide comprehensive medical services since access to care is very difficult for low income patients.

Duties of the volunteers: under supervision of the QI coordinator and Community Health Educator, volunteers will be responsible for contacting patients and scheduling appointments. They also assist in sending out information packets to diabetic patients, and help with diabetes classes and presentations at the Senior Housing Centers, among other projects.

Requirements: Bilingual (English and Spanish), motivated, responsible and hard working individuals.

This is a great opportunity for pre-med students to learn about the community clinics, meeting physicians and patients. They will also have the opportunity to learn about the MegaWest system, public speaking skills, working in a professional environment and more. The hours are flexible, but they are looking for students who willing to come in at least once a week for 4 hours.

FOUNDATION FOR THE CHILDREN OF THE CALIFORNIAS CLINIC IN TIJUANA--Fall and Spring semesters:  Click link for details

 

DENTISTRY

UCSD FREE CLINIC PROJECT-Fall and Spring semesters (Number of students determined by Free Clinic Staff)

This internship provides the unique opportunity to learn how a clinic is run and to work on a fascinating population with complicated dental and medical issues to balance. You will work with community dentists who provide services that include exams, x-rays, cleaning, scaling and root planing, amalgam and composite fillings, extractions, restorative dentistry including stayplates/flippers, partial and complete dentures and even some crown and bridgework. A mobile dental clinic to serve a broader area of San Diego is currently being outfitted. You must submit two applications. The regular SDSU application on the webpage, and the UCSD Free Clinic Application. Submit these to the SDSU Preprofessional Health Advising Office. Copies will be sent to the Free Clinic. Applicants may be interviewed by the free clinic for this internship.
 

OPTOMETRY

INSIGHT VISION CENTER- Fall and Spring semesters (Number of students determined by Insight Vision Center)
The Center provides  comprehensive vision examinations and vision therapy to low income patients with learning related vision problems.  Interns will be trained and asked to perform preliminary examinations which will include using equipment for testing patients' visual fields and also a tonometer.  Interns will assist Dr. Sanet with examinations and with vision therapy sessions with patients.

 PODIATRY

DR. JEFFREY KORN AND DR. PETER LY- Fall and Spring semesters: Number of postiions to be determined.

Learn about podiatry in two different podiatric offices. Learn about the medicine of the lower extremities and what a podiatric practice entails.

VETERINARY

INTERNSHIP AT SAN DIEGO COUNTY ANIMAL DISEASE DIAGNOSTIC LABORATORY

VETERANS ADMINISTRATION HOSPITAL VETERINARY MEDICAL UNIT--Fall Semester only--two students: Learn procedures, guidelines and regulations related to the care of laboratory animals. Students will put in more than the 60 hours per semester required by the PPHA office since they are required to work at least 8 hours a week, split into 2 days.  Clinic hours are Monday through Friday from 7 am to 3:30 pm.  Responsibilities include performing health rounds, husbandry procedures, enrichment activities, animal census, sex identification of rodents, anesthesia and blood collection. Interns are required to attend a two-day VA orientation and a two-hour VMU orientation. Students must provide verification of legal employment eligibility, proof of current tetanus vaccination, and negative TB test results.

ON YOUR OWN - Fall and Spring

In lieu of an internship arranged by the Preprofessional Advising Office, you may arrange your own internship in a health setting or get help through one of the clubs. To receive credit for these internships, you must receive approval from the preprofessional advisor and provide a contact (at the facility) for this office prior to beginning your activity. The same requirements for hours (60 total), a 10-page paper, an evaluation, and enrollment in Bio 348 that pertain to the other internships also apply to those arranged by the students. Since this is arranged by the intern, the May 1 or Dec. 1 application does not apply, but all arrangements must be ok'd by the PPHA office prior to the first day of class. The paper and evaluation remain due on December 1 for fall internships and on May 1 for those in the spring.

To receive an add code for the Bio 348 class you must:
1) complete/submit an Internship Application-Bio 348 form by the appropriate deadline

2) Complete a Special Studies form and enroll in Bio348 for one (1) credit.
In the performance of your internship, it is your responsibility to notify your supervisor if you are going to be absent. Make sure that you wear professional clothing when you are on site: slacks and shirts (male or female) or dresses/skirts (female).

Your paper should include:
a. A literature review of the topic

b. A description of clinical assessment, treatment and prognosis

c. Conclusion

d. References or Bibliography
At least 5 journal articles must be referenced that were published within the last two years. No book sources are to be used. Reference quotations or ideas within the body of the text as well as in the reference/bibliography section.

Use the following format for scientific journal articles in your bibliography or references section:

Hall, C. 1995. Effects of thiamine deficiency on thermostasis and circadian rhythm SDSU McNair Journal 2:181-189.

For Website citations:

Hall, C. 1995. Effects of thiamine deficiency on thermostasis and circadian rhythm.
Available: http://url address.

You will be graded for this one unit course and can receive either an A or F based on your participation as evaluated by 1)the physicians and staff administering the internship, 2)your paper, and 3)your written evaluation of the experience. However, if you earn an incomplete (I), the highest grade possible, when all requirements are filled, is a B. Your grade will be based on the quality of your work, and how promptly the missing work is submitted.

All internship papers and evaluations are due the first weekday of finals.

A half-page written evaluation of your experience in the internship must also be submitted at the same time for you to earn a grade.

 

Guidelines for Writing Papers for the PPHA Office

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