Pictured left to right: Junior Research Assistant Ava Milner; Research Assistant Alex Moon; Junior Project Officer Yeonseon Lee
During the 2024 summer season, YSPOR welcomed three summer students on the team; Yeonseon, Ava, and Alex. Each student worked on their own projects with support from supervisors, contributing to ongoing efforts and drawing inspiration from their individual interests and passions. They had the opportunity to explore projects that sparked their curiosity, allowing them to work on tasks relevant to their personal academic and professional goals. To learn more about their experiences click here.
Building on her previous experience from last year, Yeonseon returned to YSPOR as a Junior Project Officer. In her role, she mainly led a podcast project where she connected with people with lived experiences/ patient-partners. This platform facilitated open conversations around existing health priorities in the Yukon and showcased patient-oriented research initiatives. Yeonseon also analyzed health-related project data and created infographics and instruction manuals for knowledge dissemination.
“Through this experience, I learned the importance of deeply connecting with people’s stories and communicating effectively, especially in understanding and addressing local health priorities. It reinforced my commitment to community-led health initiatives and allowed me to apply my academic knowledge in a real-world context. I am grateful to have had this unique experience, which has allowed me to build upon my skills and continue contributing to meaningful patient-centered projects.”
Ava joined the YSPOR team this summer as a Junior Research and Communications Assistant. Throughout the season, she worked on a few projects including a literature review and writing an introduction for a project in Dawson City working to integrate Traditional Indigenous Medicine into the community hospital. Ava also explored gaps in available resources for researchers to engage with people with lived experience and began developing a training guide designed to help researchers improve their relationship-building skills.
“This summer, I deepened my understanding of health priorities in the Yukon and the importance of listening to people’s experiences. I was able to develop my skills from a fresh perspective while contributing to impactful local projects. As someone aspiring to a career in medicine, this experience has opened my eyes to challenges in the healthcare system and will shape how I approach my future roles. I am grateful for my time at YSPOR and all the opportunities I had to learn from the community.”
Alex was brought onto the team as a Research Assistant this summer. Going into YSPOR, he expressed his interests in public policy, and was assigned relevant tasks, including conducting literature reviews, writing an introduction for a paper, evaluating policy and legislation, and writing a policy brief. Through these tasks, Alex familiarized himself with knowledge translation and developed skills relevant to career interests.
“What made these tasks particularly meaningful to me was the opportunity to think from different perspectives, such as that of a policymaker, healthcare worker, patients, and their families. I also found that I particularly enjoyed reading and evaluating policy and legislation. Specifically, providing a legal basis as an incentive for policy change and development was one of the most engaging parts of my work. Working at YSPOR has been invaluable to me, as I have practiced skills relevant to my passion and gained a clearer vision for my future career.”
Article written by Ava Milner