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Four students in The City of Savannah’s Summer 500 intern program have finished their nine-week internships at St. Joseph’s/Candler knowing more about teamwork and the high pressures of the healthcare environment.

On Wednesday, two of the interns addressed the health system’s leadership team as well as Mayor Eddie DeLoach and Alderman Carol Bell to describe what they learned. In short, they saw that teamwork is key in the fast-paced medical world.

“We all had a common goal in the department, to get the patients well and get them home,” said rising senior Julia Warren, who worked on the Inpatient Rehab floor of Candler Hospital and plans to become a nurse. “Many of our patients are older and I learned how to keep calm and deal with the pressure.”

The four students at St. Joseph’s/Candler were just a few of the 500 students matched with more than 100 businesses during Mayor DeLoach’s Summer 500 program. It was overseen by Dr. Paul Pressly, former headmaster at Savannah Country Day School.

“After hearing from the students this morning, it was clear how much they enjoyed it and how much we enjoyed it,” said Paul P. Hinchey, President & CEO of St. Joseph’s/Candler. “Real-life experiences only enhance their academic experiences as the students see the relationship skills necessary to be effective. Compliments to Mayor Deloach for creating this program and Alderman Carol Bell and Dr. Paul Pressly for making it happen. We plan on having more students intern next year.”

The students interning at St. Joseph’s/Candler were:

Eugene Washington – St. Joseph’s Hospital Receiving Department
Julia Warren – Candler Hospital Rehab
Emily Brown – Special Care Nursery
Kate Meeks – Radiology

“The opportunity for a student to come to this kind of environment gives them the ability to grow and learn so much more than they might at a small business,” said Mayor DeLoach at Candler Hospital Wednesday. “On a day to day basis they can see and hear from many leaders in the organization, from the President & CEO on down. It’s amazing. I wish I would have had this opportunity.”

Eugene Washington was posted in the Receiving Department where he was tasked with both organizing the key medical supplies that arrived at the hospital and also distributing them to the right department at the right time. He told the St. Joseph’s/Candler leadership that he gained confidence because his supervisor told him what was expected and gave him the independence to accomplish it on his own, a big difference from high school.

“It’s more than meets the eye because everyone has to work together to be successful,” Washington said. Washington graduated from Jenkins High School and will join the Air Force and study to become a dentist.

 

About St. Joseph's/Candler

St. Joseph’s/Candler is a 714-bed, 4,200-employee, national Magnet-designated facility for nursing excellence, with a focus on the latest technologies and research. Its comprehensive network includes centers of excellence for oncology, cardiovascular, neurosciences, women’s and children’s services, orthopedics and a variety of other disease specialties. SJ/C's Nancy N. and J.C. Lewis Cancer & Research Pavilion has been selected to be part of the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the NCI Community Oncology Research Program. St. Joseph’s Hospital and Candler Hospital is a not-for-profit health system serving 33 counties in southeast Georgia and the South Carolina Low Country and is the largest and only faith-based institution in the region. For more information, visit www.sjchs.org.

 

About the Summer 500

The Summer 500 program is the first city and county-wide collaborative internship program designed to meet the critical workforce readiness needs of rising senior students from across the city. Spearheaded by Savannah Mayor Eddie DeLoach and Mayor Pro-Tem Carol Bell, the inaugural summer internship program helped students gain both practical workplace and soft skills necessary to successfully join today’s workforce and secure their career path of choice. The Summer 500 program was made available to 500 rising seniors, from both public and private schools, and took place over a nine week period from May 31 to July 29.