Emily Beam, a 3rd term PMSC AmeriCorps member serving with UPMC Altoona Family Physicians, gets things done to address critical needs in community wellness for Blair County residents and beyond. Beam utilizes her background in Biology and her training in written, oral, and visual communication to connect local community members with critical resources to improve physical, mental, social, and emotional health.
Over her terms of service, Beam has been instrumental in “helping with the development of the Patient Resource Navigator Program.” With this initiative, Altoona Family Physicians collaborates with Penn State Altoona to “provide patients with valuable information about community resources.” Emily invests her AmeriCorps service time to “provide resources for things like food, housing, and transportation” to community members in need of those critical resources in order to thrive. She also utilizes her gifts in the arts to create easy-to-access resource guides and graphics to help connect community members with the information. In addition, the Patient Resources Navigator Program empowers “future healthcare providers with an opportunity to learn about the social determinant of health and gain experience talking to patients.”
In the fall of 2024, Beam plans to head off to medical school at Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine. When she completes her education, she plans to return to Blair County to invest in the community where she was raised. Emily’s AmeriCorps experience has been part of developing her passion for bringing health and wholeness to neighbors and community members. As a result of her service time, Beam says that she is poised to be part of long-term solutions, having “gained both a better understanding of both the resources and the needs of my community and experience being part of and carrying out multifaceted projects.”
Combining her passion for art and her science background, Emily Beam is bringing out the very best of her community and of America. Connecting community members to critical health resources while simultaneously reaching out to young people in local schools to empower them to explore careers in medicine. Investing in the present and the future, Emily Beam is getting things done to bridge gaps and make lasting impact.
Leave a Reply