July 18, 2014 — The Office of Government Affairs, Community Relations and Advocacy held its first Career Exposure Workshop. Seventeen students from area high schools, colleges and trade schools enjoyed a half-day at CHOP, where they heard from five CHOP employees about their current positions and the path which led them there.

The panelists included

  • Peter M. Grollman, vice president of Government Affairs, Community Relations and Advocacy
  • Jessica Barr, clinical supervisor in Ophthalmology
  • Donna Mims, senior talent strategist in Research
  • Denise Gruccio, MSN, CRNP, PNP-BC, nurse practitioner in Endocrinology
  • Vicki Poorman, medical interpreter

Students enjoyed lunch, networked with employees and took a tour of the Hospital. This workshop proved beneficial for both the students and employees; we plan to hold more such workshops in the near future.

Health Fair Ambassadors program

Community Relations launched the “Health Fair Ambassadors” program. This program was created in an effort to streamline requests CHOP receives to attend health fairs and other volunteer events, as well as deliver a uniform message out in the community.

Health Fair Ambassadors are CHOP employees who volunteer their time to attend health fairs on various topics throughout the year. Sixteen CHOP employees from various departments attended the first orientation. Representatives from CHOP’s Healthy Weight program, Injury Prevention, and Reach Out and Read spoke to the volunteers about their programs. Since the Health Fair Ambassadors program started, our office has been able to receive and fill even more volunteer requests in the community.