Annalise Cook, a third-year Biomedical Science student majoring in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at UWA, has been nominated for the McCusker Centre for Citizenship’s Outstanding Intern Award for her contribution with the Fremantle Women’s Health Centre (the Centre).
As Health Promotions Project Intern, Annalise created an event calendar and presentations, helped organise and run free education sessions on women’s health topics, and established processes that could be followed by staff and future interns.
“We serve vulnerable women in the community, and Annalise demonstrated an impressive ability to develop resources that could effectively speak to these groups. She approached her work with thoughtfulness and showed an awareness of difficulties many clients face” said Amy House, CEO of Fremantle Women’s Health Centre.
“Annalise built an instant rapport with our small team, bringing enthusiasm to learn about our work and quickly becoming an asset. She helped develop real health education materials for professional educators and nurses to use in future” Amy said.
Working with the Centre for her internship was an invaluable practical addition to Annalise’s UWA experience.
“The internship was the best unit I’ve taken in my degree; it was an experience that can’t be replicated in class work, and it was extremely rewarding,” she said.
“I realised how deeply engrained issues relating to women’s healthcare are, and even as a woman myself, I learned things that I believe should be general knowledge.”
The opportunity to be part of a not-for-profit was one of the motivations for Annalise to apply for the McCusker Centre for Citizenship internship program, and this aspect of the experience was a highlight.
“I have experience working in larger organisations where sometimes work can go unnoticed, so it was really good to see my contribution having a direct impact and being appreciated by the team,” Annalise said.
“The experience helped me gain valuable skills, and observing the positive values of the team in their work inspired me to be a better person day-to-day. My colleagues at the Centre were some of the kindest and most knowledgeable people I have ever worked with.”