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Senior Completes Volume Internship at Bethany Children’s Health Center 

Maddy Lu
Casady School senior Mustafa Aamir benefited from his involvement in the Volume summer program at Bethany Children’s Health Center.
During his junior year, Aamir became concerned about finding meaningful volunteering opportunities due to the pandemic. He was afraid that his volunteer hours would be a burden for him during his senior year, so he talked to his college counselor, Mrs. Amy McQuade. She recommended he apply to the Volume program at Bethany Children’s Health Center.

Aamir knew a family friend whose brother had a very rare heart condition. Occasionally, he would visit the family and it was an impactful experience to see all the ventilators, machines, breathing tubes, and medication this little boy needed just to live. It broke his heart seeing a young child with such a life threatening condition, and it motivated Aamir to seek out the Volume program.

“I applied on the Bethany Children’s Health Center website," he said. "The application took less than 15 minutes; it asked for personal information and my intentions regarding the program."

About two weeks later, Aamir received an acceptance email. All that was left was an in-person interview at the hospital, which he said was probably the most stressful part of the application.

During his time in the program, student interns occasionally helped out in the classrooms and played with the children, read books, or assisted the nursing staff. Aamir observed medical professionals from a distance while shadowing; the doctors and staff had everything under control, and student assistance was not necessary.

"We met four days a week and our classes were about three or four hours long," he said. "Icebreakers at the start of our days included fun games, discussions, or even just follow-up questions about what we did the day before."

On a typical day, Aamir's instructors Bailey Tyler and Claudia Votaw gave a small lecture about the expectations and nuances of the hospital. His time in the program centered around learning from volunteering physicians and medical staff, helping children in their classrooms, and exploring different medical fields within the hospital like occupational therapy, speech therapy, and others. The student group would convene again to review the key takeaways of their day before being dismissed.

“The Volume program afforded me the opportunity to meet a lot of students from around the metro area," Aamir said. "Coming from different backgrounds and schools we initially found it somewhat difficult to connect with one another. However, we eventually discovered commonalities."

Aamir said the most interesting volunteer work he did while at the center was seeing occupational therapists help a young patient regain the ability to walk. The therapists used very expensive equipment, including a pool with a treadmill-like floor, to help the child regain motor function.

"An important takeaways from this summer program is the will to go for any opportunity, to branch out and leave your comfort zone," he said.

Aamir currently sits on Bethany Children's Teen Leadership Board and is still in contact with his peers from the Volume summer program. He said he is interested in becoming a pediatrician, which was not something he had even considered before applying to the program.

Aamir said it is incredibly easy to apply for this program. Go to their website and click on volunteer programs. There should be a direct link to the Volume application. The form asks personal questions, and about why you are interested in applying to Volume.

"I would definitely recommend this opportunity to other Cyclones who are interested in the medical field," he said. "If you are having trouble deciding on a specific medical profession, this program is a must."
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Casady School is an independent, co-educational, college preparatory, Episcopal day school serving students in pre-k-12. Educating Mind, Body, and Spirit.
Casady School is a PreK-12, independent, college preparatory Episcopal day school committed to deeper-level learning. Casady School welcomes a student body that reflects the diversity of the world around us and therefore does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, nationality, or ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, athletics, and other school-administered programs generally accorded or made available to students at the School.