Fatima Rodriguez grew up in Long Beach, California. After working hard and graduating high school, she went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from California State University San Bernardino.
Inspired, in part, by her older sister who forged a career in behavioral therapy, Fatima applied and was accepted to a Master of Biomedical Sciences (MBS) program at California University of Science and Medicine. After achieving her MBS, it was time to get on with her professional life. But, Fatima wanted to work more with patients than in the lab.
Fatima explains, “I remember asking myself, ‘What am I going to do now?’ I knew I wanted to pursue a career in medicine or health work, but wondered how I could gain the right experience?”
She eventually looked into what would be required to become a Physician’s Assistant (PA). To get into a PA program, typically 2,000 hours of hands-on patient care experience is needed.
That led her to check out Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) programs, and in-demand job with plenty of patient care. But, Fatima was discouraged by the cost. “I could not afford to pay $2,000,” she says. Thankfully, a Google search led her to JVS SoCal’s HealthWorks program. A no-cost eight-week course sounded like exactly what she needed.
After an initial interview and an online test, Fatima enrolled in the program in the fall of 2021. The curriculum gave her very practical information. “It was so useful to learn how to greet people, talk to patients, position them properly and things like that,” she says.
She also put what she was learning into practice during a couple weeks of clinical hours. The interaction with patients and others proved to be highly beneficial. “I’m an introvert, so it really helped me grow as a person while gaining skills,” she explains.
After Fatima received her certificate, she began looking for a CNA position at a Long Beach-area hospital, without initial success. However, White Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles reached out to see if she would be interested in a position. “I believe they heard about me from the HealthWorks program,” she says. Placement support is a key feature of our career training programs. After a Zoom interview, she got the job!
Now, more than a year later, Fatima has racked up many hours of valuable experience supporting patients. She admits that learning how to make conversation with patients and build rapport was daunting at first. “Now it’s one of the things about my work I enjoy most,” she says. “I like to listen to patients. I learn their stories and what happened to them. They like it, too.”
She is still focused on eventually becoming a PA, but she has a particular niche in mind. When she was young, she often had to accompany her Spanish-speaking parents to medical appointments in order to translate for them. “If a patient doesn’t have someone to translate, they don’t really know what’s happening,” she explains.
It’s something she sees happen a lot, and there are only a few staff members available to translate. Fatima wants to be a PA who can speak in Spanish with Spanish-speaking patients, allowing for direct communication and greater understanding, trust and comfort. “I want to communicate with Spanish-speaking patients so they experience better care.”
Are you interested in helping others like Fatima to make life-changing career moves? Learn more here.