Since I was a child, one feeling that has remained the same for me is an urge to help. I was not always sure how I would help in the world, or who, but I knew I wanted a career in healthcare. There was this show I used to watch with my dad called Dr. Pole. The show was about a vet business run by Dr. Pole and his family. In each episode, they would see distraught pet owners come into their vet clinic in need of help. I watched the show for years with my father and saw Dr. Pole perform various medical/surgical procedures on these pets and farm animals through a screen. The reaction of their owners after he was done with a successful procedure is what stuck with me. The look of genuine happiness and gratitude never got old. This show led me to do my own research into the world of veterinary healthcare. For a long time, I wanted to be a veterinarian but my interest grew from animals to people. I watched my cousin have a seizure in front of me one summer night and realized I had no idea how I could help him. I realized that I wanted the ability to help someone if they were to collapse in front of me or have a heart attack. In my last year of eighth grade, my school gave an announcement about an early college event at the local high school. This event was host to a number of programs that allowed students to take both high school and college classes at the same time. I applied to two programs. Out of the two I was accepted into one. Career and Technical Leadership Academy. The program was divided into five pathways. Applied engineering, IT, Education, Nurse Aid, and Medical Assisting. This program allowed me the fastest opportunity to pursue the career in healthcare that I wanted. I chose the medical assistant pathway because I preferred a clinical setting as opposed to a hospital. My experience during clinicals has made me realize just how much I enjoy interacting with patients. Many of the elderly that come into the primary care office have no one that they can talk to at home so I try and make conversation with them when time allows. I genuinely enjoy hearing the patients talk and getting to know them better with each visit. Many of the employees at the clinic I intern at go through the motions of their job. Everything is procedural and they do not take any interest in the patients. It is very common in healthcare for patients to not get the best care possible because of staffing issues and a lack of interest from healthcare workers. I would like to become a medical or clinical office manager and try to change this.