Jordan Pretto ’16, ’19 wasn’t sure what to expect when going into her addiction medicine clinical. However, she left the experience knowing she wanted to focus her career on continuing to help these patients receive the care they need.

“When I graduate, I hope to get a job in addiction medicine,” she said. “There are drug problems in every community, and these clinicians are a beacon of hope. They provide counseling, medical services, and resources for patients to succeed.”

Grand Valley has been integral to helping Jordan on her journey to becoming a physician assistant (PA). As an undergraduate, Jordan was a part of the Pre-Physician Assistant Club, which familiarized her with the program’s admissions process and the profession so she would be better prepared to enter the graduate program. Now as a graduate student, she feels completely supported academically and emotionally.

“Grand Valley’s PA program is taught in cohort groups,” said Jordan. “We become a family with the people in our cohort, the faculty, and administrators; and we support each other through this challenging curriculum to become PAs like we’ve always wanted to be.”

One of Jordan’s favorite aspects of the PA program is having the opportunity to work with other disciplines in order to cultivate a collaborative practice. She has attended interprofessional education events where she worked with students in programs like occupational therapy, physical therapy, pharmacy, and speech-language pathology.

“Interprofessional education is so important to understanding how different specialties can work together in order to provide the best care for patients,” she said.

Thanks to donors like Gary and Joyce DeWitt who support the Daniel and Pamella DeVos Center for interprofessional Health, students like Jordan will continue to receive these valuable learning experiences.

“I just know the new building is going to help students to the utmost degree,” said Jordan. “The space will allow students and educators to connect on many levels for experiences that address patient care holistically - helping students become more engaged and empathetic health care professionals.”

Jordan would like to thank donors for making this interprofessional learning environment possible.

“Thank you so much for making this community one that is interprofessional, so we can learn from other professions and be able to work together,” she said.

In the future, Jordan looks forward to applying her interprofessional skills to provide holistic care for her patients.

“I want my Laker Effect to open doors that allow people to feel comfortable recognizing when they need to seek healing and guidance, both for themselves and for others. I want to be a part of ending the shame, stigma, and obstacles that prevent so many of us from living our best lives,” she said.