Staff profile: Kari Halvorson
If Kari’s name sounds familiar, it’s because she was one of the original care coordinators for Project Access Washington County, which was a program of the Essential Health Clinic. That program, along with the Clackamas and Multnomah County programs, were later united under the umbrella of Project Access NOW.
The thought of becoming a doctor had been in the back of Kari’s mind for a long time. As an undergraduate at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, she felt a connection to health care through her volunteer work at a free clinic. After graduating with a degree in Spanish, Kari moved to California to work for Americorps for a year as a volunteer outreach coordinator for Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services. When that position ended, Kari was ready for a new adventure. She decided to try Portland, where her brother and a cousin were living at the time.
Kari found the position at Project Access Washington County and, finding herself back in the health care field, she soon felt the push to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor. So, in 2010 Kari resigned from Project Access Washington County to return to school full-time for a year to complete the pre-requisite courses she would need for admission to medical school.
With the pre-requisites behind her, Kari contacted Project Access NOW this past spring to see if we could use her help while she studied to take the MCAT and begin the year-long process of applying to medical school. We jumped at the chance to have Kari – and her experience and prior knowledge of working for Project Access Washington County – back on the team.
Kari says, “Working for Project Access NOW highlights the constraints of the current health care system. It has helped me identify the role that would be most effective for me. As a doctor, I will have the ability to give and to influence the health care system and provide care for patients.”
In her spare time, Kari sings and plays violin with friends in a band that plays music with what she describes as a “folk” sound. She loves to cook and bake, enjoys playing most sports, and is also trying to learn how to sew. Who knows…maybe she’ll become a surgeon?
