College of Health team delivers critical speech and hearing screenings in rural Alaska
by Shelby Kriegh |
A team of College of Health faculty and students from the 蘑菇视频 (蘑菇视频) recently traveled to Bethel and two nearby rural communities to provide free speech, language, and hearing screenings. This trip, funded by 蘑菇视频鈥檚 Area Health Education Center (AHEC), brought critical health services directly to Alaskans while gaining hands-on experience in rural healthcare delivery.
蘑菇视频 Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) Program Director Dr. Alisa Konishi-Therkildsen and SLP Term Assistant Professor Megan Bennett supervised a team of students representing multiple healthcare disciplines on this interprofessional service-learning trip. Student participants included Trista McNamara, a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant (SLPA) and future graduate student; Marissa Manley, a nursing student; Anna Seryozhenkov, an SLP minor and future graduate student; and Saena Lee, an SLPA student. Together, the group delivered free screenings to community members who may otherwise have limited access to speech, language, and hearing services due to geographic and healthcare access barriers common across rural Alaska.
鈥淭his trip was a powerful reminder of what is possible when we work together across disciplines toward a unified goal,鈥� said Dr. Konishi-Therkildsen. By bringing together students with different professional interests and levels of training, the experience reflected AHEC鈥檚 broader goal of preparing collaborative healthcare professionals ready to meet Alaska鈥檚 workforce needs.
For the students, this experience offered more than clinical practice. It provided firsthand insight into the realities of delivering care in communities where access can be limited and where early intervention can have lasting impacts.
鈥淓arly screenings can make a huge difference in helping children access the resources that they need sooner,鈥� said Seryozhenkov. 鈥淭his experience gave me a broader perspective on some of the barriers rural communities in Alaska face in accessing healthcare. Those barriers drive me to want to help people even more, and have given me confidence in the fact that I鈥檝e chosen a fulfilling path forward.鈥�
McNamara reflected on how the experience shaped her understanding of equitable healthcare and her future role as a clinician. 鈥淭his experience deeply impacted me and strengthened my commitment to equitable care. As clinicians, we have an ethical responsibility to provide support when and how we can.鈥�
The trip also reflects a broader effort to strengthen partnerships between academic programs and experiential learning opportunities that prepare students for practice in Alaska鈥檚 unique healthcare landscape. Through experiences like the speech, language, and hearing screenings in Bethel and surrounding villages, students develop clinical skills while building relationships with Alaska communities and gaining a deeper understanding of rural healthcare delivery.
As Alaska continues to face healthcare workforce shortages, programs like AHEC Scholars aim to create pathways for students to return to underserved communities as skilled, community-minded professionals prepared to meet the healthcare needs of all Alaskans.
To learn more about Alaska's AHEC Program and ongoing projects, visit the AHEC website.
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