SERVICE LEARNING PROJECT

MacKenzie Olbrys

Sociology 2000
Section 501
4.19.16
Journal 1: 2.28.16 11:00am-3:00pm

1. Today the hospital was very slow. There were only about 5-7 patients per team. As a

result, I spent most of my time searching for jobs to do and observing and participating in

conversations with my co-workers. There is one tech-aid, Suha, who is always very

bubbly and open to talking with anyone. I observed how she acts and also conversed with

her. She always asks people how their day is and keeps track of what they previously

have told her to make the workplace very personable. To her there seem to be no barriers

within the hierarchy of jobs in the hospital from volunteer, to secretary, to tech-aid, to

tech, to nursing assistant, to nurse, to physician assistant, to physician. She treats

everybody the same and is willing to listen and show her emotions to anyone. This is in

stark contrast to some of the nurses and doctors that seem to look down on people like

volunteers.

2. Coming in contact with Suha really made me reflect on myself and how I act with my co-

workers. I thought, how could she remember all these things about people and talk to

them not in comparison to their status in the hospital? Then I started thinking of why I

found it to hard to talk to the employees in the hospital. I realized that I was fearful to talk

to them because of the assumptions of their behavior I had made based on the color of

their scrubs. I realized the color system in the hospital not only made people recognize

their job but also made them subject to judgment with the certain behaviors and actions

associated with that position. This is a micro look at how we judge people based on

assumptions and treat them accordingly.

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 3. I wondered where this judgment came from and I realized that I was judging the workers

based on their occupation, a voluntary status obtained also known as an achieved status

(Conley 133). I was wondering why I associated certain behaviors to certain positions

and that was through socialization, a lifelong process that teaches me how to function in

society (Conley 116). I had learned through experiences and other people convincing me

that a person's credentials seemed to be their master status, the one status that overrides

others that we majorly see and make judgments on (Conley 134). Through analyzing with

the symbolic interactionism perspective, I acted fearful of those with more credentials

based on the meaning I have been taught for that particular profession (Conley 137).

Through the judgments I made I was perpetuating norms in society where the more

credentials you have, the more respect and authority you deserve.

4. Currently I am following the norms that separate the credential from the actual person.

From this knowledge gained I have learned to not be as fearful talking to these

employees. We are all people with different levels of experience to accomplish the

common goal of helping people and saving lives in the emergency center. We work as a

well-oiled machine where everyone plays their own specialized task to keep people

healthy.

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Journal 2: 3.6.16 11:00am-1:00pm

1. Today at the Hospital there was a new volunteer from India in training, and I got to help

to train her when my shift leader was busy. We started to discuss why she came to

America and how she likes it here. She stated she was here to get a degree and then most

likely go back to live with her family. She started listing things that she found interesting

to be different: the food in America, the way people drive, and the freedom she has with

schooling, but also the difficulty of her classes. She also expressed how difficult it is to

be away from her family in order to progress herself.

2. It was very intriguing to hear about her life from another country. Then I started to think

of putting myself in her situation. I cannot imagine how difficult it must be to go to a

school in a foreign country where I did not speak the language very well. When I am

stressed out with classes my safe haven is my home, my parents, and my siblings. I could

empathize with how much she missed her family. I could also understand why she would

not necessarily love everything she has encountered in America because of how new it is

to her.

3. As I was empathizing with her, I realized that American culture is so much different than

the culture she is from. In this new country she has to go through resocialization, the act

of reengineering one’s sense of social values, in order to prosper in American society. I

can imagine this is incredibly difficult when she has been socialized to become a

productive member in her society (Conley 131). Although she was still learning the

American culture, she did understand one aspect deeply which helped her to make her

decision to be educated in America; the ideology of freedom, opportunity, and ability to

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 start from nothing and become something was an important aspect that persuaded her to

come to this country (Conley 83). As I listened to her discuss how difficult of a decision

it was to come here I realized she was experiencing role conflict when she made the

choice to come to America to get an education (Conley 133). As a daughter she did not

want to leave her family. As a student she believed that going to America to get the best

education she could was crucial. As a woman and human being she saw an opportunity to

reach her goals by coming to America to improve her life and the lives of those around

her.

4. Talking to her about these struggles and triumphs helped her to realize why she is in

America despite the hardship, but it was still difficult for her. Empathizing with her and

discussing these things help her to solidify the faith that she could learn about American

culture and education to reach her goals. From this experience I can gain the knowledge

of how different cultures are and how society really shapes our perception on everything

from what we eat to our motivations to certain goals.

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Journal 3: 3.6.16 1:00pm-3:00pm

1. Today at the hospital I did many transports. When I am assigned to do a transport I do not

know whom I will meet. During one transport I met a man who was in the hospital to

detox for alcoholism. He was very open in telling me his shortcomings and

disappointment in himself for getting to this point. As I was transporting him upstairs he

started crying while still telling me about his story. He really emphasized the part of his

story about lying to so many people that love him. Although he was clearly upset, he

never said he couldn’t turn things around. He still had a shred of hope that he could

change things because of how his family has not given up on him.

2. I have had people close to me struggle with alcoholism and I understood his pain. I

reflected on my own experience when somebody I love could not stop drinking or

smoking. I realized the one thing that turned her life around was the fact that she had a

family that needed her and the fact that the family was there for her through her struggles.

I realized that everybody has different motivations and rationale to act in a deviant way to

cope with the things they have gone through in their life, but family and other people

seem to be a large reason to why we decide to try to fix ourselves.

3. As I thought about this I started thinking of alternative deviant behavior that could follow

alcoholism, like suicide. I wondered the reason to why people like the patient and

someone I know were able to turn around. I believe part of the reason was because of the

level of social integration they had because generally if you are more integrated into a

community or group you feel somewhat obligated to support the members in the group

(Conley 198). The man in the hospital felt disappointed and dissatisfied with his life

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 mainly because he was letting the people that love him down. This shows the high

integration that makes us accountable for our actions. I also realized that the person he

was truly upset with was himself. He was able to apply the stigma, a negative label, of

being an alcoholic to change his self-concept of himself (Conley 211). He felt the

dissonance of his actions, yet felt powerless to fix it. This changes the way he views

himself to lose hope. However, due to seeing the way people he loves view him, he is

able to have hope that his struggles do not define him.

4. When I was talking with this patient I was honest and shared my story. I tried to

encourage him by saying that the fact he realized he needed to change was the important

factor. I told him his family sees that he is trying to change, and the person he has to

convince is himself. He was very appreciative of what I said. From this experience I

realize how much of a difference it makes in our decisions, life, and self-concept to have

people who care about us.

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Journal 4: 3.13.16 11:00am-3:00pm

1. There is a very diverse group of people in the hospital. Today I encountered many

different individuals and had many different conversations. I realized through these

conversations that diverse people have many similar goals and means to get there. For

example, I went into a hospital room where the family was speaking a different language

and I asked if the needed anything. They asked for a blanket and water. When I came

back with those things, they started to ask me why I volunteer; a question I get often from

many different people. I told them that I aspire to become a doctor, specifically a trauma

surgeon or emergency physician. They commented on my statement with how their

daughter believes she wants to do the same thing and that it was really inspiring too see

me already working hard to get to my goal. Sometimes when I answer this question,

however, I get a response of an assumption that I would want to be a nurse instead or

people look at me and sarcastically say good luck. This was also a response I received

today.

2. The multitude of responses come from many different people from different places and

different ages and are both encouraging and disheartening. I love to hear the encouraging

statement that I am laying out a path that other people want to follow and that I seem like

I would be able to accomplish this goal. On the other hand, when people tell me or

insinuate that I cannot accomplish my goal I get slightly discouraged. However, there is a

larger part of me that desires to prove them wrong and this makes me want to accomplish

my goal even more.

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 3. As I think about what people say to me and how I react I wonder why I respond in this

certain way. Is it innate or is this a learned behavior? From the sociologist’s perspective

my stubbornness and my will to strive for my goals against adversity is shaped by

interaction or the “nurture” side of my life (Conley 120). I am always told I get my

stubbornness from my father, but is this a learned trait or one that is genetically inherited?

With children like Genie, sociologists can further support the argument for the nurture

perspective of “human nature” because it is proven that when there is little to no social

interaction, the way of speaking, walking, and even mental capacity do not develop fully

(Jacobs). So, there is a case that my response to people’s judgment is learned, especially

when you take into consideration that the family is one of the largest agents of

socialization (Conley 124).

4. Even though I internally argue and combat the judgments against me in this situation, I

do not say anything to the people who made these judgments and use stereotypes. I could

say something to maybe point out that norms are being perpetuated because of what they

say to me. Yet, no matter what I say to them, the important lesson I can learn here is to be

appreciative of who I am with the strong will to keep going when others say I can’t. I still

do wonder if this is in my nature or if I have learned this, but either way I am glad to have

these fine traits.

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Journal 5: 3.20.16 11:00am-3:00pm

1. During volunteering today not much was occurring. There were only a couple transports

but the two transports I took were meaningful. In one there was a wife with her husband

as a patient. She talked to me and the other volunteer escorting the patient about our

futures. Usually people are not willing to talk when we are transporting patients. It’s even

more rare to talk with people so enthused and encouraging about our futures, so talking to

this lady was a pleasant surprise. On the other transport a nurse had to come with us to

monitor the patient. When we went upstairs I could tell the nurse felt slightly

uncomfortable. We moved the patient to the bed with only comments that were

necessary, which isn’t what I expected to occur. After we left the floor the nurse asked us

if we felt the tension and stated that there apparently is hostility between the nurses in the

EC and the nurses on the upper floors.

2. During the experience with the lady who talked to us about our futures, I felt incredibly

encouraged and pleased that she did not discourage me from what I wanted to do even

though most people look at me and doubt I can accomplish my dreams. This made me

wonder why people do look at me and doubt me. During the experience with the nurses I

started to wonder what would cause this divide. They all are there to help the patients and

yet are stratified by floor. I also noticed that the nurses didn’t address anything to each

other yet talked once the other nurses left.

3. When I was looking for explanations to the discouragement from others I thought it was

because of what I looked like and the fact that I am a female. The judgments and

assumptions made towards me would classify as sexism (Conley 307). If jobs are

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 dominated by men usually this is defined as a male job, applying the idea of sex to topics

that have essentially nothing to do with sex. With this kind of mindset I must be ready to

possibly face the glass ceiling, which is an invisible limit for a woman to climb up the

occupational ladder (Conley 313).

With the conflict between the nurses I noticed behavior like this was explained by

Erving Goffman’s dramaturgical perspective of social life where we are all performers

on a metaphorical stage (Conley 139). When these nurses didn’t address their issues and

just ignored each other, they were “saving face” and practicing front stage behavior

because in the workforce, it is unprofessional to argue in front of patients. Then when we

left the floor she showed her resentment towards the other nurses, practicing back stage

behavior (Conley 141).

4. From this experience I have seen the dramaturgical perspective in practice and looked at

myself to realize I do this as well as a volunteer to create a professional self. I also came

to the realization that sexism does exist in the minds of people and not being discouraged

by what people think is important to make a position seem to be gender neutral and to not

perpetuate gender stereotypes.

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Journal 6: 4.3.16 10:30am-1:00pm

1. During volunteering today there was one important instance that set the tone for the rest

of my shift. The emergency center was becoming very busy and our rooms in the EC

were filling up. As a result, we were trying to transport stable patients to other units in

order to avoid putting too many people in the hallway. Because of this I had many

transports to the units close to the EC. During two transports to a particular unit the

nurses sent me back to the emergency center saying the room was double-booked. Upon

returning to the EC, the EC nurses said they double-checked the room and there was no

one else going into the room and no reason for the other nurses to send the patient and me

back. The other nurses refused because they were so overwhelmed with the patients they

had already.

2. When I realized that this was actually the case, I was surprised. Technically nurses cannot

refuse to treat somebody, but at the same time how well can you treat so many people

under stress? On the same point though, the nurses are trained to care under pressure. I

wonder why these nurses chose to do this. Shouldn’t all the nurses and the entire staff

work as a unit to give the best treatment in the most efficient amount of time?

3. As I was mulling these questions over in my head I started to rationalize that maybe

working together as one unit is a little easier in theory. I believe these nurses dealt with

the stress of being busy differently and many of the nurses, especially those in the other

unit, were experiencing role strain, where there is incompatibility within the demands of

having the status of nurse (Conley 132). Nurses have so many patients to attend to. In the

role of a nurse they must keep tabs of vitals, respond to a patient’s every need whether it

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 be bathroom or medicinal needs, and they really have to handle the emotional needs of

patients as well because people are more likely to feel comfortable with talking to a

nurse. Having so many roles within one status would be overwhelming and stressful.

Some people are better equipped with knowing how to deal with this role strain. This is

possibly why the nurses in different units react differently to so many patients.

4. In order to impact the situation during this stressful time, I would go around and ask the

nurses if they needed anything and try to do my rounding more frequently to help with

the patient’s basic and emotional needs so the nurses could focus on making them feel

better physically. This experience made me realize how important having techs, tech-

aids, and volunteers is. Having many people doing similar jobs gives us more of an

opportunity as a unit to take care of every part of the individual.

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Journal 7: 4.3.16 1:00pm-3:00pm

1. Today during volunteering the hospital was very busy. The Doctors and nurses were

incredibly strained and couldn’t spend too much time in the rooms. I was doing my

rounding during this time and was asked to take a woman to a CT scan. When I entered

the room the women was clearly upset. I told her I was taking her to her CT scan and she

got more upset because she did not know why she was getting this done and the doctor

had only popped in and out of the room. We went to CT regardless and she refused the

test. We went back to her room and she was not afraid to voice her opinion of her

experience at the hospital. She stated she wasn’t upset with me but was upset with how

little she saw her doctor and nurse while she was lying there in the hospital bed. I told her

that we were incredibly busy at that time but I could try to get either a nurse or doctor so

she could speak her grievances. She then asked me, “So am I supposed to believe and feel

like the doctor is too busy to have time for me?”

2. When the patient asked this it caused me to think. My response was that this wasn’t the

case and that she had to understand the doctors were working as fast as they could.

Although I defended the staff, I could sympathize with how she felt because she was

alone and confused in her room and really wanted to go home. Then as I thought of this I

was wondering what makes us believe that our time may be more precious than others?

What makes us believe that just because somebody is not there means they don’t care

about us?

3. As I was mulling these questions over in my head I started to think the answer is

explained through the type of ideology, or system of concepts, we have (Conley 83). We

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 have certain expectations when we enter a hospital. We assume that because we are ill we

should be the sole priority to the nurse or doctor because we are the sole priority to

ourselves. When we don’t see them enough we assume that we do not matter because the

doctor won’t even take the time to drop in. We tend to forget that we are not the only

ones being treated. Another explanation to this behavior would be because of our sense of

the generalized other, expectations we have learned to understand a variety of settings

and circumstances (Conley 123). The lady was upset because she felt like she had a

privilege to be a priority based on her interpretation of where she was and of her role as a

patient. According to her interpretation of her position, it was acceptable to be upset

because she had learned in this social setting that a good doctor, nurse, and hospital will

be there constantly checking up on her. However, the reality of the situation is as much as

I know the staff would love to do that, they are spread very thin when so many people

come into the emergency center at once. I know for a fact that the staff workers this day

were not being negligent at all; they were running around trying to take care of as many

patients as possibly no matter if they were hungry, thirsty, or incredibly stressed.

4. During this experience I was reassured of how important my position as a volunteer in

the hospital is. Although I cannot treat the patients, I can at least make them feel as

though they are a priority to fulfill their expectation of being in a hospital. This reflects

very well on the hospital itself. Healthcare really is not only about physically caring for a

human being, but also caring for the individual psychologically. This realization will help

me to be a better volunteer and also healthcare professional when I become one. So, even

if a patient's expectations aren’t met, I can sympathize to let them know the staff and I do

care.

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Journal 8: 4.10.16 10:30am-3:00pm

1. Today the hospital was decently slow; a nice contrast to last weekend. When I was doing

my rounding I was able to meet an incredibly sweet old woman. She was very

appreciative of me just coming into her room and getting her a blanket and pillow. As I

talked with her I realized that because of her condition she was required to be dependent

on the staff. Most patients take this realization very harshly and act out because of it, but

she greeted each person that helped her with a smile and remarks of thankfulness. She

also responded to everyone with such trust. She told me everything that was going on

with her and expressed how much faith she had in the doctor. This kind of trust is a trait I

have noticed is difficult for people, especially the elderly, in similar circumstances in the

hospital to have.

2. Seeing a woman so appreciative and positive in a time where most people become

blaming and pessimistic is revitalizing to the work that I do. Her reaction exemplified the

effect volunteers and healthcare professionals have on patients. Patients have to be so

dependent and trust that all of the staff will do whatever they possibly can to treat

properly to assist the patients to live better lives. Even though I see how the doctors and

nurses work with people, I started to wonder why the drastic difference in attitude

towards the hospital and employees would occur. Of course it depends on how

individuals cope with their experiences, but I was looking for a socially constructed

answer.

3. I was thinking that the attitudes differ possibly because of the effect of how much power

an individual usually has in his/her daily roles in life. The lack of control they feel over

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 their situation and the trust they must have in somebody else may be a new circumstance

they are experiencing. This could create a power struggle within which would cause them

to act out. A further explanation of this observed behavior could be role conflict, tension

between different statuses one upholds (Conley 133). Those in the hospital occupy a new

status as a patient and the behaviors associated with this status are lack of control and

trust. This status in the hospital becomes the master status in the hospital setting (Conley

134). The roles one assumes as a patient could conflict with the usual role with control

and independence one occupies in other statuses. The dissonance between the new status

as a patient and other occupied statuses could cause people to act out in irritation, stress,

or disapproval of one’s current situation.

4. By realizing the struggle people do face physically and also mentally in the hospital, I can

understand patients better to be best equipped to help. There have been multiple instances

where I have sat with upset patients to just listen to their concerns and guide them

through a better way to interpret things. This helps the patient and also the healthcare

professionals do what is best for each other to maximize the benefits of the care. Seeing

the wonderful lady’s reaction really made me realize how relative each person’s reactions

are to themselves and their own personal circumstances. I believe that being able to

understand the individual on an emotional level could open up a healthcare professional’s

ability to care for them. Therefore, one must be sensitive to how a patient behaves and

feels to truly treat them.

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Works Cited

Conley, Dalton. You May Ask Yourself: An Introduction to Thinking like a Sociologist.

Core 3rd ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 2013. Print.

Jacobs, Michelle R., Dr. "Socialization ~ Chapter 4." Sociology 2000. Wayne State

University. 23 Feb. 2016. Lecture.

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The Rulebook

Rule #1: Do not make assumptions

Explanation: Every person you encounter in a hospital environment has a different scenario for
being there, a different worry, a different experience, and different interpretations. Making
assumptions and allowing that to affect the way you treat people could affect the way that they
respond to your care and treatment. Being blind to your own assumptions will allow the patient
or individual to feel more comfortable and open to complete physical and emotional care.
Penalties: If you make assumptions and judge/treat an individual differently based on those
assumptions you will not be able to truly care for the patient because he/she will become closed-
off based on your interpretation of them. If you judge, somebody could interpret this as a reason
to be hostile towards you because they may think their circumstance is illegitimate in your eyes.
Rule #2: Beware of your own interpretation
Explanation: As human beings we automatically interpret our surroundings and the people we
meet; this is learned to allow us to adapt to the circumstance accordingly. Interpreting to
understand the situation will give you a broader perspective to become better equipped to help
patients and staff. However, sometimes our interpretations allow us to rationalize being
discriminatory and this is the downfall we need to be aware of.
Penalties: It you are not conscientious of where your interpretation will guide you, you could
accidentally or purposely discriminate. This will create a hostile working environment and make
your treatment less effective because a person’s response could be one of aggression or irritation.
If we discriminate we hurt our own reputation and the reputation of the hospital establishment.
Rule #3: Understand the relativity of each patient’s reactions and respect each diverse
circumstance
Explanation: Based on each individual’s experience no person will respond the same to their
situation in the hospital. Understanding that this is relative to each person will give you the
ability to empathize and make the patient feel like you accept and believe their concerns are
legitimate because they truly are. This will allow you to assess each circumstance differently to
accommodate to the whole person being cared for.
Penalties: If you do not understand that everybody is affected differently by their circumstance
you can get stuck in a position of not being able to take care of the patient because they will not
feel respected. This could also lead to you misinterpreting situations further to possibly hurt
yourself by taking something said as an act of judgment towards you which would create an
unhealthy environment.
Rule #4: Demonstrate positive attitudes and high degree of integrity

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Explanation: When you exemplify a good attitude and integrity these actions are contagious.
Sometimes being a light within yourself could be a light for somebody else who is in a situation
of depression or anger.
Penalties: If you are not the good example for other people, you miss an opportunity to give a
person hope that things will get better. If your attitude is negative you are perpetuating the
depressed or angered state, which could cause an individual to act out and make the staff of the
hospital less able to help the individual. When you open up a person’s eyes to the ability to also
smile and change their interpretation of their circumstance, they are much more likely to trust
and allow the health professionals do the best job they can in the time they can treat the patient.
Rule #5: Work as one unit, as one team
Explanation: Working as a well-oiled machine allows for more efficient treatment of the whole
person. Understanding you work for a common goal regardless of your achieved status will unite
the workers to create a better work environment for collaboration and respect.
Penalties: When we do not work together as a team strife and stratification result. This could
affect the mood of the workers and possibly in return, the patients. Not working together also
slows down the treatment of the patient. This could lead to a patient feeling unimportant and not
cared for. This assumption will reflect badly on the hospital and the workers and take away from
the employees of the hospital that do truly want to change and save lives.
Golden Rule: Do not see people for who they are relative to just the hospital environment, see
them for who they are as human beings.
Explanation: Each person we encounter in the hospital has a different story and different
experiences that have shaped him or her and brought him or her to the point in which they are at
presently. This is what makes us all human and connects every one of us despite the diversity of
each of our stories. When we see people for who they are, not in the role of their occupation or
the role of a patient or concerned family member, we can then sympathize to create and open
atmosphere for true compassion to help a person on a deeper level emotionally and physically.
Penalties: When we see people for only who we believe they are based on their status in the
hospital we lose the opportunity to understand each person on a deeper level because our
judgments and interpretations create our reality. Reality is socially constructed. Therefore, our
reality can be misconstrued when we only see and then interpret based on assumptions. To truly
understand each other we must collaborate and speak openly so our judgment does not cloud our
interpretation of an individual’s circumstance. This is the key to an environment of health
emotionally and physically; the key to a hospital experience to save lives.

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