I'm not from portland; I will be in portland; I know nothing. (professionals)

[hurrayfornorway]

Hey everyone,

I'm writing to get some insights of Portland (and surrounding) residents on some ways to integrate into the community. Shortly, I'll be moving to the area for an abbreviated period (2-3 months), where I will then matriculate into a graduate program across the country. I have family in the area, at the moment, but would like to extend beyond my preexisting ties to the area. Mind you, I am not originally from the area - and my sister only recently transitioned to the area. With my time in the area, I would like to participate in activities beyond hiking, sports, etc. etc (these are a bit easier to get information online when I get to the area). Specifically, I am thinking of opportunities to hop in on potlucks, dinners, meet other students/professionals, and get to know the area a little more with my short time there. Thanks in advance for any attention to this post.

P.S. On a completely unrelated note, I would also like to participate in some hospital shadowing (physicians, PAs, etc.), if time permits. I'm hoping to circumvent the labyrinth that is the hospital volunteer application. Any insights from hospital employees or others? Once again, thank you for any help!

[Nell Plotts]

The hospital volunteer application is in place to protect patients. If you are unwilling to comply with that you shouldn't consider health care as a profession. If you 'don't have time' at this point to go through the process I wouldn't share that fact with others, it communicates poor planning. Sorry if I sound brusque in this regard but as a patient I want those who I interact with in the health care system to be thoughtful and carefully vetted.

Contact your academic institution to find professional clubs/societies in this area in your field of interest.

[bler144]

Originally Posted by Nell Plotts

The hospital volunteer application is in place to protect patients. If you are unwilling to comply with that you shouldn't consider health care as a profession. If you 'don't have time' at this point to go through the process I wouldn't share that fact with others, it communicates poor planning. Sorry if I sound brusque in this regard but as a patient I want those who I interact with in the health care system to be thoughtful and carefully vetted.

Contact your academic institution to find professional clubs/societies in this area in your field of interest.

That's a bit harsh. I agree with you on the HIPAA issues, but I suspect some of what the OP meant is that certain organizations are just bad at responding to inquiries. Likewise, coordinating shadowing for many depts. seems to be a task that gets shuffled around, so the person you were told to contact no longer has that role and it can dead-end.

That said, only being here for 2-3 months, I don't know that you're going to get too far with the larger hospitals. Even if you're aggressive, it's liable to take a few weeks of calling to even make connections much less get invited in the door. And then they're liable to want to cap the number of hours you're there per day/week. In another life I did some shadowing. I'd say it took about 3 months of making contacts to get 100 hours in, and I was starting out with some local contacts and references.

If you're looking to shadow at a smaller private clinic, you might make more headway, but I think you'll want to think about what they're getting out of the deal, particularly given that you're not local. Taking on shadowers requires labor and a bit of disruption on their end. Why let you shadow instead of someone who might be going to OHSU and can be tapped/evaluated as a potential hire down the road? Not to mention, they won't know any of your references.

Can it be done? Possibly. But not knowing anyone at all, it's going to take a while to get in the door somewhere I'd wager.

[Rob Allen]

Your user-id leads me to guess that you might be interested in this group: Sons of Norway Grieg Lodge

[Nell Plotts]

It takes a Norse to scold a Norse.

The Sons of Norway Lodge is very welcoming.