oregon health and science university:
​PEDIATRIC CARDIOLOGY RESEARCH

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It was both an honor and a pleasure to conduct my senior capstone volunteer work at the Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU). The university was originally funded in 1887 by the University of Portland as a Department of Medicine. Today, that department has come far from it’s humble origins growing to become a medical research powerhouse: providing top-notch care for patients, education for students, and work environment for staff. As one of Oregon’s largest employers, OHSU provides service for thousands in a multitude of formats. OHSU works hard to educate the medical personnel of the future, not only incorporating the proven methodology that has stood the test of time but the latest research as well. Both education and research contribute to improvements in quality of treatment, ending with a higher quality of service for all. 

“OHSU strives for  excellence in education, research and scholarship, clinical practice and  community service. Through its dynamic interdisciplinary environment, OHSU  stimulates the spirit of inquiry, initiative, and cooperation among students,  faculty and staff.”

    Research in medicine occurs in a community format, meaning that progress made through an individual organization such as OHSU adds to the benefit of all. My personal contribution occurs as a research volunteer, where I am proud to assist projects that utilize OHSU’s abundant resources to pioneer life-saving procedures for environments lacking resources to do so independently. This is only a small sample of my responsibilities which center around the overall progression of research in pediatric cardiology. This occurs through the incorporation of echocardiography-a non-invasive form of imaging. My primary responsibility is to be able to use the various modalities and take pictures/videos from the necessary angles. 

    Research is dependent on resources and labor, without both progress is slow or non-existent. Resources include but are not limited to adequate facilities, technology, organ donations, and financial contributions. Labor comes as the contribution of one’s time, and in the case of the research volunteer it is not compensated. This does not in anyway mitigate the gratification that comes from the process, because it enables research to occur faster and at a lesser overhead. 
    
OHSU Research Volunteer and the University Studies Goals

Diversity: Doctors, students, and volunteers all play a crucial role in the research process. Each status presents it’s own advantage if it is respected and incorporated. The diversity that results from the differences in experience, knowledge, and perspective is essential for innovation because it enables both procedure and technique to be analyzed differently. Part of this diversity in perspective stems from the numerous cultures and languages that come together in collaboration. 

Critical thinking: research is conducted through the scientific method. This method pulls away from an absolute truth and strives to produce continuous improvement in our reasoning and methodology. Looking at the goals concerning my project, critical thinking is the foundation of the experiment methodology, and will be essential in the conclusion phase because it will influence further experimental direction. This format of analysis strives for unbiased decisions and will only support the diversity we posses in the laboratory, providing an excellent platform for growth.  

Communication: Without strong and clear communication scientific research would be significantly less efficient. Echocardiography relies on impeccable communication between the individual angling the probe and the individual operating the modality because the quality of analysis is directly correlated to being able to capture at the right angle and modality settings. 

​Social responsibility: research requires a high volume of support before findings into practice. The most important steps to implement during this lengthy process are as stated above: diversity, critical thinking, and communication. Diversity brings about innovation by helping solve approach problems in a different way, critical thinking produces bias free procedures/protocol, and communication results in efficiency and understanding. ​