Caring for Spokane’s Young Patients

Hello! My name is Maggie Rietze, and I am a rising sophomore intending to major in biology. This summer, I spent three months interning at Centennial Pediatrics of Spokane in Spokane, Washington. Right after finals at Whitman ended, I joined the entirely female team at Centennial Pediatrics to learn more about working in a pediatrics practice and help the clinic improve efficiency and quality for the providers and management workers. 

Centennial Pediatrics is a newer clinic founded in 2022 by two providers. The clinic has now grown to four providers, including a psychologist. On Tuesdays, I have the pleasure of shadowing Dr. Jenn Kalisvaart throughout the day as she sees her patients. During the school year, she drops off her three kids at school and meets me in her office to start her day of patients around 9 am. Depending on her schedule that day, she will often take a break between patients and let me ask any questions about the previous patient or explain why she decided to recommend that treatment. During lull moments, she will take me back to her office and look up images and information on Google to help me understand a specific disorder or procedure I am unsure about. I appreciate this because I am a visual learner, and her showing me images instead of just telling me about a disorder is very helpful.

On some days, I shadow the medical assistants as they room patients, perform diagnostic tests, and give vaccines. On the other days that I am at the clinic, I work with the management and business side of the clinic. I have updated vaccine records, updated demographic information for about 1,500 patients, updated referral locations, and set up a patient portal for parents. Recently, I have been researching and writing summer-themed blog posts for parents to reference when wondering about popular topics like sunscreen information for infants, how to protect their child during a heatwave, and swimming safety.

From observing Dr. Jenn and the other providers in the clinic, I have observed the importance of being personal, slow, and interested in the livelihood of each patient. In pediatrics, you aren’t just treating the kid, but you are working with their parents in the best interest of their child. Parents value when their child’s doctor knows their family and the child's interests, needs, and personality.

I have always loved working with kids, and this internship confirmed my career objective of working in the pediatric medical field. I have learned that pediatrics can be heartbreaking and full of giggles, joy, and magic. This internship has allowed me to work closely with a well-established physician in the community, creating connections in a field I hope to work for. I have cherished my time at Centennial Pediatrics, and I thank everyone for warmly welcoming me into the team.