“One thing that we’ve learned with our similar program in Springfield is, a lot of the times when the interns come in the beginning of the school year, there’s a lot of heads down, no confidence,” said Brooke Martinez, director of volunteer and auxiliary services.
They may not be sure of some social interactions or social cues, Martinez said, but they soon come out of their shells.
“You notice a huge difference between when they walk in the door at the beginning of the school year and the end of the school year,” Martinez said.
The Urbana program, which started Aug. 19, has six interns with a capacity for seven. Interns spend three mornings each week at the hospital, where they learn hands-on skills in a variety of areas.
Each intern will do two different rotations throughout the year in areas like nutrition services, environmental services, linen, registration, the lab and waste management, Martinez said. The rotations are selected based on the intern’s interests and skills.
Hayden Thomas, 18-year-old intern, said he wants to try the linen department and fold gowns. Thomas is in his second year of the LIFE program.
The LIFE program is for students ages 16 to 21, said Molly Schmidt, Madison-Champaign ESC LIFE transition instructor. The students typically stay for two years but this can change depending on their individual needs.
The program is for students with disabilities to prepare them for independence and work at a competitive job.
One helpful skill the interns have learned so far at the hospital is the five-10 rule, making sure they know to speak with someone within five feet and make eye contact within 10 feet, Martinez said.
The interns retain a lot of helpful information, getting a lot from the program, Schmidt said.
Thomas is enjoying what he learns through Schmidt and at the hospital, he said.
Thomas shared some of what he has learned thus far, including disinfecting procedures, putting the brake on a wheelchair before putting a patient into it and hygiene practices like sneezing into the crook of you elbow.
He is excited to start his rotations, Thomas said, is looking forward to giving Schmidt and Martinez a tour of the hospital to demonstrate what he’s learned.
The skills are transferable to future jobs, whether they are at the hospital or in an entirely different field, Martinez said.
Springfield’s Project SEARCH interns recently started, too. Since the program launched in November 2011, 94% of its interns found employment within a year of graduation, according to the hospital. There were 86 graduates in 2024, with some being hired by the hospital.
If they are hired on at the hospital, there are number of different areas they can work in, Martinez said, such as nutrition services, environmental services, waste management, lab, linen and registration.
“One of our graduates who just graduated this last round just got hired on, so they’re wonderful, and they show up,” Martinez said. “They do a great job, they’re invested in it and they want to do a good job. I think the biggest thing, too, is they are always happy to be there, and those smiles go a long way.”
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