Hello! My name is Rose Arkus and I am currently in my Masters of Public Affairs program at the John Glenn College of Public Affairs at The Ohio State University with an expected graduation date of May, 2024. My summer fellowship service site is PrimaryOne Health corporate office.

I think it is important to disclaim the mission statement of PrimaryOne Health, ” it is our mission to provide access to services that improve the health status of families—including people experiencing financial, social or cultural barriers to healthcare“

Services provided:

OB/GYN

Primary Care/ Pediatrics

Dental and Vision Services

Behavioral and Mental Healthcare

Adult and Internal Medicine

Speciality Care Services

Health Care for the Homeless

On Monday when I first embarked on this summer journey I was frankly filled with uncertainty and curiosity. Starting something new is never easy, and taking a leap of faith into a new organization felt a little uncomfortable. Although, for unforeseen circumstances the beginning of my week at PrimaryOne Health was a little off-kilter I took it in stride, and pivoted. This is one of my strong suits, the ability to move with the flow, shift, change, and this is a necessary tool when working in the non for profit sphere.

I got to learn a lot about the nitty gritty of Primary One Health School Based Health Centers (SBHC), and how the Groveport Madison and Columbus City Schools have come together to serve the needs of those in the community. Governor DeWine has funded into this endeavor, the SBHC grant is designed to develop new sites in both Groveport Madison and Columbus City school. I quickly found an admiration, and interest in this critical endeavor. Students, families, and community members will now have extended services, and have access to imperative health and behavior services that were not available prior. Every single person that I have met in both the corporate office, and also in the sites I have visited thus far have been exceptionally warm, kind, and inviting. I have my own physical space in the office, and have felt instantly brought into the team. I see so much potential and so many amazing people to learn from, and it is an overwhelming feeling.

I have been working closely with Susan who has been so supportive, and welcoming. I have been able to sit in on some meetings, and have already learned so much. Susan is the director of marketing and communications. She does so much, and I have an interest in learning more about marketing and communications as well as social media from people on her team. PrimaryOne Health has so many little pockets of areas of interest, every corner I turn I find something I am excited to learn about, and I can feel my passion growing for the mission of this organization. Susan took me to two PrimaryOne Health health centers. There are 11 locations, we went to the E. Broad St. location, and the Parson location. Each site serves different pockets and demographics of the community of Columbus where the site is situated in. They have been described to each have a different feeling, and I am so excited to get to see all of them. Being in the physical site brings me the most excitement because I love the hands on and visual aspect that I do not get to have when I am at corporate. The employees and clinicians at E. Broad were so kind, and also you could see how much of a team the staff are. They focus on primarily behavior health, and I got a tour of the facility as well as got to talk to some of the Physicians and Behavioral Health Clinicians. Parsons Ave. was such an awesome experience. The facility was so big and had so many services offered. In their site they had a primary care wing, pediatrics, women’s health, and a physical therapy unit which is very rare for a Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMH). The people exuded warmth and passion and it was contagious. The Centering Pregnancy program was so special, and I cannot wait to sit in on a session potentially.

I have so many feelings of excitement, invigoration, and pride to be apart of an organization that is made up of so many wonderful people that are doing such critical work in the Columbus community. I am sitting in a position where I get the opportunity to experience many different things and I get to see so many moving parts of such an impressive machine come together to serve those who need it most. Community health is such a passion of mine, and I think this is the perfect place to give me a glimpse into all the different niches within community health. I want to contribute in any aspect I can, and just absorb all the wonderful things I can learn in the next 10 weeks. I’m in a place in my professional career where I feel enlightened and unbound to expectations so I truly believe that through my time at PrimaryOne Health and The Columbus Foundation I may be pointed in the direction I’ve been searching so desperately for.