Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE – A dozen University of Maine at Orono students planning careers in health care, dentistry and optometry were in Aroostook County recently providing health education programs to northern Maine migrant workers and children in rural and underserved communities.
Staff photo/Scott Mitchell Johnson
FAITH ANDERSON, who attends the Aroostook Band of Micmacs’ Little Feathers Head Start program in Presque Isle, practices brushing the teeth of a stuffed animal held by Aaron Perreault, one of a dozen University of Maine at Orono students who were in the county recently providing health education programs to northern Maine migrant workers and children in rural and underserved communities.
“This is the third year UMaine’s Health and Legal Professions Advising Office has sent students north as part of the university’s community outreach initiatives and to expose students to rural areas in the state that are underserved by health care professionals,” said Crisanne Blackie, a health and legal professions career specialist with UMaine’s Career Center.
Students met with 200 to 300 students in Head Start programs and area elementary and middle schools, and about 150 migrant workers on broccoli farms over the four-day span. They also visited northern Maine high school students to encourage them to consider careers in health care and medicine, beginning with pre-professional preparation at UMaine.
Blackie said part of the initiative is to expose the students planning careers in health care to rural areas where services may be limited, with the hope that they will return as health care professionals to work in those areas later.
“We started this because we wanted students to gain more exposure to the health care needs of rural and underserved populations,” she said. “A lot of times, students are asked to come back while they’re in medical school to do a rotation in a rural area. Sometimes, students don’t know what a rural area means.”
Nearly 13,000 migrant workers are registered to work seasonally in Maine, according to Blackie. Career Center’s Cathy Marquez said the volunteer work also exposes UMaine students to a total immersion into Spanish-speaking communities, where they sometimes cook and eat with working families.
“The service-learning experience also can enhance a student’s application to medical school,” she said. “Rural Maine is in dire need of new health care professionals, specifically dentists and physicians. The pre-medical program at UMaine encourages students to consider establishing practices in Maine after they become professionally certified.”
Students visited schools, community centers and farm worker communities in Caribou, Presque Isle, Ashland, Limestone, Fort Kent, Wallagrass, Wisdom, Eagle Lake, and Westfield from Aug. 25-28.
One of the many stops along the way was to the Aroostook Band of Micmacs’ Little Feathers Head Start program in Presque Isle.
“We’ve been doing dental health outreach to elementary schools,” said Erin Keim, a sophomore at UMaine, “… simple things like teaching children how to brush their teeth and when they should. We have interactive worksheets, and they get to practice brushing on our stuffed animals. We also read ‘Moose’s Loose Tooth,’ which the kids really like.”
The undergraduates also offered migrant clinics while in the area.
“We had clinics in Limestone, Westfield and Caribou,” said Corinne Grant, a UMaine senior. “At the clinics we’ve been able to take the blood pressure of some of the migrant workers, give them pulse readings, dental health information, and the importance of keeping their eyes healthy … wearing sunglasses and things. We also sit in with the physician’s assistant and nurse when they do their exams.”
This is Grant’s and Keim’s first year in the program, and first visit to Aroostook County.
“It’s really nice to be able to interact with people of all ages,” said Keim. “It feels like we’re having an impact. The children are so excited to learn about brushing their teeth and taking care of themselves like big kids.
“With the migrant workers, it’s so interesting to learn about their lives and what they’ve been doing, and to help them in any way,” she said. “I plan to come to ‘The County’ every year to do this. This experience has opened so many doors, and it’s really made me excited about being in health professions and being able to help people. It’s really a great learning experience.”
Grant agreed.
“We’re all part of the Health Professions program at UMO,” she said, “so most of us are pre-med students. I’m actually applying to med schools right now. I like being role models for the younger kids, and even the older kids, too. Getting to know our peers is also nice, as well. I’m learning a lot.”
The Aroostook County visits are funded by and coordinated with the Acadia Health Education Coalition based in Bangor, and supported by the Maine Migrant Health Program in Augusta.
Staff photo/Scott Mitchell Johnson
ROSSI KENNEY, center, a student at the University of Maine at Orono, shows, from left, Abagayle Pelletier and Nikita Benaquisto good dental habits during a recent presentation at the Aroostook Band of Micmacs’ Little Feathers Head Start program in Presque Isle. This is the third year UMaine’s Health and Legal Professions Advising Office has sent students north as part of the university’s community outreach initiatives and to expose students to rural areas in the state that are underserved by health care professionals.
