DEI Healthcare Initiative Gives Students Insight into Older People’s Perspective on Healthcare

As healthcare students step into their new roles as healers, they must learn to listen and connect with the different communities of people they will soon be treating.

In partnership with Phoebe Ministries, DeSales’ DEI Healthcare Committee brought more than 100 older adults together with aspiring healthcare students on Oct. 2 for a unique intergenerational event titled “Tell Me a Story: The Years in the Life and The Life in the Years.”

Students had the chance to meet and interview residents from Chestnut Ridge at Rodale, as well as members of Phoebe's Continuing Care at Home Program, Pathstones by Phoebe. 

Father Kevin Nadolski, OSFS, Ph.D., vice president for mission and chief of staff, opened the event with a prayer quoting Pope Francis: “The quality of a society, of a civilization, is also judged by how it treats elderly people and by the place it gives them in community life.” 

The goal of the evening was for students majoring in healthcare fields to develop professional skills while gaining knowledge from the experiences, stories, and wisdom of older generations. After a brief dinner, students were able to accomplish just that by breaking into small groups to interview the older residents assigned to their respective tables. 

“It’s so easy to see other groups and be like, ‘Oh, that person needs different care.’ But it’s so hard for students to see the elderly as their own group that requires special attention, special care, and special prioritization in some areas.”  -Joe, older participant involved in the event 

The discussions covered various topics essential to healthcare and aging, including access to healthcare and medication, cultural competence, loss, ethics, nutrition, and the complexities of aging. 

Jacalyn Cuozzo ’25, a marketing and healthcare administration major, viewed the event as another example of DeSales’ commitment to its Catholic, Salesian values.

“Within the Catholic religion, this is exactly what God sends people out to do: to learn, to be there, and to serve Him,” Cuozzo said. “This is especially important in the healthcare field and our treatment of the elderly community because it is how we are servants for Him.”

The event was held in recognition of Active Aging Week, an annual weeklong campaign aimed at celebrating and highlighting the positive aspects of aging. It was first launched by the International Council on Active Aging in 2003. 

“Events like these not only celebrate Active Aging Week but highlight the mutual learning and understanding that can take place between generations,” said Lisa Hoffman, executive director of Pathstones by Phoebe. “We were very grateful for this partnership between DeSales University and Phoebe Ministries, which enriches both the students’ education and the lives of older adults in the community.”