Pre-Med Core Fieldwork Experience:

Observation and Reflection Process

Name: Adrian Burger A/B Day: A

Advisory Teacher: Keeble Junior/Senior: Junior

Location or Agency: Justice Tour

Prepare:
Prior to your first visit​ to your fieldwork location, please answer and reflect on the following
questions:
1. What do you know of the location you will be visiting? What services does the
organization provide? What do you understand your purpose of the fieldwork trip to be?

We will be visiting a jail house. Services provided are keeping the public safe. The purpose of
the field trip is to gain an experience on what goes on in the jailhouse.

2. If you are visiting a specific department, what is their primary focus?

We are visiting the jailhouse and the sheriff’s office. The sheriff’s office focus is to help and
keep the public safe. The jailhouse is to give the inmates their sentence.

3. What aspects of mental health do you imagine you will see during your observations?

I’m pretty sure that the some prisoners will have bad mental health problems.

4. What bias (or preconceived ideas) might you have about the location you will be visiting?

I might have an idea that all the prisoners are bad people.

5. Please do some brief research on your location. Cite your sources as you look for
information on their mission statement, stated services and clientele supported.

Observe:
Review the prompts in advance. Add to the text boxes after each visit, with dates labeled.

During your FIRST visit​:

- Take a look at your surroundings and read them as if close reading a text. Pay attention
to sensory details: signs posted, languages you hear, colors of the offices and uniforms.
Does your location have a certain smell or feel? What sounds do you hear? Etc. Record
your observations here.

Shadowing Date: Response: The whole jail smelled like baloney sandwiches. Everything
4/20/18 in their had a flow that felt efficient and secure. I think everyone had
specific uniforms for what they do in the jail.

During ALL Visits:

- Take notice of your reactions (emotional and physical) to different things and reflect on
why you might be reacting this way. Record these here.

Shadowing Response: We saw a mental health consumer in one of the units and she
Date:4/20/18 was freaking out. The jail unit didn't really look like a jail unit. It seemed a
lot more open and there was no bars. I was expecting more prisoners to
be in their. The security was tight, their were cameras and mirrors
everywhere. The insides of the units were made of rubber so that the
inmates couldn't hurt themselves.

Ask questions of the person you’re shadowing and/or the industry people you encounter:
- general questions of interest
- relating to your potential career choices
- mental health issues or challenges they encounter or see as important to consider.

Record your questions and answers here.

Shadowing Date: Response:

Reflect:
After your return from shadowing each day, take a few minutes to reflect and answer the
following questions.
 1. Describe a few specific highlights or observations from each day and a lesson (big or
small) you took away from each. Consider lessons that may be taken away from
negative experiences or challenges in your day as well as positive ones.

Shadowing Date: Response: Something I learned about was the “sally ports”. Those are a
checkpoint where there are two doors and one doesn’t open unless the
other is closed. We also learned that the sonoma county jailhouse is
acting as a prison for some of the inmates because the prison population
rate is getting overpopulated. The jailhouse also had an xray to see if the
prisoners have any contraband in their body.

2. A. How did the experience meet, exceed, or fall short of your expectations? How does
this inform your expectations or preparation for your next visit? What can you do to
enhance your experience next time, if applicable?

Shadowing Date: Response: The experience was pretty cool. It gave me an idea of how a
jail operates.

B. What connections can you make between what you saw and mental health:
- the role of mental health within this career path
- mental health needs or challenges within this community
- thoughts on how to prepare for or resolve these needs

Shadowing Date: Response: Authorities have a tough job and they need to keep a good
mental health. The prison population has a rough mental health
record. They struggle but the jail offers helpful opportunities to the
prisoners.