Working at Husky Coronavirus Testing throughout the Omicron surge has certainly opened my eyes to how vital the research project is to the UW community. Not just because of the data that we collect, but there were a few weeks in January where our testing sites were the only ones in the Seattle area providing free covid testing with available appointments. We had lines longer than an hour wait, and people were willing to wait in the rain and cold for a test. It really illuminated how fragile the city's testing capabilities are, even entering our third year of the pandemic. It also made going into the kiosk really fulfilling, even as winter quarter got difficult, knowing that people really needed us to be there and that we could help. Seeing how important the kiosk was to the UW community, motivated me to continue to look into post-grad positions in community based work. I really appreciated being able to be involved in research while at the same time benefitting the community throughout a public health crisis.
Additionally, my work in the Husky Coronavirus Testing program contributes to the carrying out of their research and project. It's the needed groundwork to collect the data essential to the study. This data then informs UW officials about the status of the Covid-19 on campus, they use the data to make decisions about campus Covid-19 policies and procedures. I am excited to continue my time with the Testing Program for the rest of my time at UW! I hope that in my future I get to continue to participate in human-behavior health related research. My time here has really opened my eyes to how large the field of public health research is, and that more times than not, it can involve person to person interaction. I learned that I really enjoy interactions with other people in my job, and that data analytics may not be for me.