Four Rush University students have been selected for the 2024-2025 Schweitzer Fellowship.
As fellows, Sayyida Hasan, Rush Medical College; Trevor Poulson, Rush Medical College; Nicole Safran College of Nursing; and Nicole Walkowiak, College of Nursing, will participate in a yearlong service-learning program where they will design and implement innovative projects that address the health needs of underserved Chicago communities.
“Rush University is extremely proud of our students and their commitment to the community Rush serves,” says Rush University President Robert S.D. Higgins, MD, MSHA. “Students participating in programs like the Schweitzer Fellowship is representative of our commitment to foster community service and a shining example of the university’s passion for improving health inequalities.”
Each fellow will collaborate with existing organizations to create a community-based project, dedicating a total of 200 hours of service. Using a broad public health lens, the new fellows will work to improve community well-being and target the social determinants of health — the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age that have a profound impact on health and quality of life.
- Hasan, a medical student, proposes seminars and workshops on musculoskeletal health for women who are at risk for violence. These sessions will provide education and serve as a support structure for long-term musculoskeletal health outcomes.
- Poulson, a medical student, in partnership with the Center for the Underserved at Rush ENT (CURE) Clinic, plans to increase provision of specialty medical care for unhoused Chicagoans. Trevor plans to expand outreach of the CURE Clinic to additional shelters for those experiencing homelessness.
- Safran, a general entry master’s student in the College of Nursing, will initiate a project aiming to improve the mental health and well-being of formerly incarcerated people. Safran will facilitate community-building and health education for those completing current programs in residential facilities.
- Walkowiak, an Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner student, will provide wound care education to people with intravenous drug injection wounds. She will work closely with staff and volunteers on outreach teams to enhance their knowledge of wound care and help them identify when to direct a patron to seek medical treatment. The education she offers focuses on harm reduction, reducing wound infection and preventing sepsis.
Using an interdisciplinary approach, the fellowship exposes students to real-world interprofessional, collaborative care and aims to develop lifelong leaders in service. This year’s fellows include students from 11 schools and nine disciplines, ranging from nursing to art therapy and public health.
“I am immensely proud of our Rush medical students and their willingness to take on opportunities to lead groundbreaking health care initiatives aimed at addressing the health inequities,” says Cynthia Brincat, MD, PhD, acting dean, Rush Medical College. “Our students embody the values that are central pillars to the educational experience at Rush University and the medical college.”
In addition to their service projects, fellows will participate in a 13-month program that includes monthly meetings, training and ongoing opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration. They will also have support from a team of mentors from their schools, project sites, alumni network and staff. The new fellows join a network of over 750 Chicago alumni.
"I am extremely proud of our nursing students for pursuing innovative and thoughtful solutions that will advance health equity," says Christine Kennedy, PhD, RN, FAAN, John L. and Helen Kellogg Dean of Rush University College of Nursing and interim provost Rush University. "Research and scholarship focused on the community are cornerstones of the Rush educational philosophy. The projects Nicole Safran and Nicole Walkowiak are leading are shining examples of our values in action."
Named in honor of famed humanitarian and Nobel laureate Dr. Albert Schweitzer, the Chicago Area Schweitzer Fellows Program encourages students to become lifelong leaders in service by addressing unmet health needs among divested Chicago-area residents.
