Volume 24
Number 19
September 20, 2013
Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania
`` Community College of Philadelphia student Shanice Jackson (second from left), who currently transports HUP patients in the Pipeline Program, with (from l to r): Nahree Anderson, nursing assistant; Lorna Taylor, unit secretary; and Diane Leichter, nurse manager, all of Silverstein 9.
UPHS Pipeline Program Sees Great Results “ Keep away from people who try to belittle
your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.
”
Kevin Mahoney, senior vice president and chief administrative officer, UPHS, shared these words by author Mark Twain to the 2013 graduates of Penn Medicine’s High School Pipeline Program.
Indeed, 100 percent of Pipeline students in 2012 graduated from high school, compared to 59 percent in the city of Philadelphia as a whole. One hundred percent of the class was accepted into college as well.
Gathering for a recent ceremony celebrating this year’s graduating class, Penn Medicine staff, family members, community partners, and friends quickly learned what makes the comprehensive Penn Medicine High School Pipeline program a success every year. That success is measured in each and every student entering the program.
Participants worked throughout UPHS, regularly met with different mentors and managers, and experienced other professional development opportunities while taking community college courses and keeping up with their high school studies and responsibilities. The program recruits solely from West Philadelphia high schools.
INSIDE 'Contagious' Isn't Always Bad!....2 Excellence in Trauma Nursing Winners.......................3 HUP Triathlete Races for IOA.....3 Honoring The Wishes of Seriously Ill Patients.............4 Employee Flu Campaign Starts Next Month.....................4
“You not only met our expectations, but you exceeded them,” said Frances Graham, associate director of HR Workforce Development. With financial support from Penn Medicine, University City District, and the Philadelphia Youth Network, approximately 10 Pipeline graduates are chosen to become Penn Medicine Academy interns, working 20 hours a week and being paid for 40 hours. The 40 hours allows participants to take advantage of
Penn Medicine’s tuition benefit to help fund a college education. Additional funding comes from HUP’s Trauma Department in the form of $500 scholarships for selected students aspiring for a health-care career. Rhonda Holmstrom, Trauma Outpatient & Injury Prevention coordinator, presented scholarships to the following students for their college studies: Miles Burton (Pomona College), Kyjae Moore (Millersville U.), Amir Nash (Chestnut Hill College), Alexis Jackson (Community College of Philadelphia), Alhaji Tunkara (West Chester U.), Ismael Kagone (U. of Richmond), and Brittney Williams (Jackson State U.). “This is not the end; this is the beginning,” said Al Black, HUP’s chief operating officer. “The money that the trauma foundation at HUP raised is recognition that when you’re doing the right thing, people will often step up and help you.” These efforts to do the right thing were seen in numerous stories of students and their (Continued on page 2)
1