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Kelli Carrington, Public Relations Specialist, Public Liaison Officer, Office of the Director, Office of Communications and Public Liaison, National Institutes of Health
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Public Relations SpecialistMeet a real Public Relations Specialist, Kelli Carrington
1. I chose this career because...
2. My typical workday involves...
3. What I like best/least about my work...
4. My career goals...
5. When I'm not working, I like to...
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1. I chose this career because...
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Kelli holds a picture of her grandmother, who inspired her career.
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I chose to become a public relations specialist because I wanted to help people make informed decisions about their health. My grandmother inspired my interest in health. I was very close to her. When I was 14 years old, she had a series of heart attacks and passed away. I wondered what I could have done to help prevent the heart attacks. I talked to my grandmother almost every day. Weeks before her first heart attack, she told me about a pain she had in her arm and about her constant indigestion. Years later, I learned that my grandmother was describing her heart attack in-progress while on the phone with me.
In the following years, I thought about how important it is for people to know more about health and the signs of disease. I sought opportunities to get exposure to jobs in the health field. As a teenager, I volunteered as a candy striper at the Washington DC Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Then I volunteered as a cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) instructor with the American Heart Association and the American Red Cross. These experiences sealed my interest in the health field.
I began looking at local schools that offered degrees in health careers. I thought about medicine, but eventually decided that route was not for me. Instead, health education, which can fall under the category of public relations, rose to the top of the list. Health education would allow me to promote its core principle: to help people make informed decisions about their health. This principle speaks to what originally lead me to the field of health. Looking back at my grandmother’s health situation, had she known about the symptoms of heart disease or had I known, my family may have been able to get her the treatment she needed. As a health educator, I am able to promote a principle that helps people participate in their own health and healthcare.
For about eight years, I worked as a health educator focusing on health communications and community research related to arthritic diseases. As I saw how these programs empowered people to take charge of their own health, I became interested in how such programs might transition to broader health challenges and populations. That quest led to my current position as a public liaison officer at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Through my current position, I have the opportunity to positively affect people on a grand scale. My career changed from helping individuals to engaging many people in the medical research process, which directly affects healthcare outcomes of populations, communities, and individuals.
College Education
- Master of Arts, Community Health Education and Promotion, Trinity (http://www.trinitydc.edu), Washington, DC
- Bachelor of Science, Health Education, University of the District of Columbia (http://www.udc.edu/) Washington, DC
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2. My typical workday involves...
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Kelli and COPR (Council of Public Representatives) members meet biannually for round table discussions of current work projects.
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One of the great things about my job is that I don’t have a typical workday. Much of my work involves interacting with members of the NIH Director’s Council of Public Representatives (COPR, http://copr.nih.gov/). COPR is made up of members of the public who advise the NIH director on issues related to NIH research and outreach efforts. My key activities on one day may include a teleconference with several COPR members to discuss project plans, later a review a of material to be posted on our Web site, and completion of research for a report. On another day, I may meet with colleagues to learn about emerging scientific issues, review opportunities for COPR members to participate on agency initiatives, and meet with the NIH public liaison officers to talk about their institute’s public engagement activities.
My Major Responsibilities:
- Coordinating COPR work projects
- Planning biannual COPR meetings
- Coordinating the COPR application process
- Conducting meetings and activities with the NIH public liaison officers
- Producing an electronic bulletin (The NIH Public Bulletin, http://getinvolved.nih.gov/newsbulletins) that highlights public activities sponsored by NIH
- Networking to promote and support public engagement and outreach in medical research
A current COPR focus involves encouraging researchers to engage communities, people affected by their research, in the process of research planning, development and implementation. This focus stems from the council’s purpose to enhance public participation in the biomedical and behavioral research endeavor.
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3. What I like best/least about my work...
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Kelli works at her desk, reviewing material for an electronic bulletin that highlights NIH sponsored public activities.
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What I like best about my work is that it speaks to the core principle of helping people make informed decisions about their health. In my job, I get to work with many people who are dedicated to improving the health of people throughout the country and abroad. I am a resource to the COPR, the NIH officers of public liaison, and other individuals within and outside of the NIH. I enjoy helping to connect the people and projects together to form a productive outcome, believing that the sum is greater than its parts.
What I find most challenging about my work is that it is laden with unknowns. The COPR or the NIH public liaison officers may be asked to develop recommendations for a situation, or a solution to an issue. These challenges turn into big questions. How do we go about getting answers? What will the impact be? Will we be enhancing or hindering the current state of events? There are a number of people involved with each group, so figuring out how to facilitate the development of recommendations or solutions is no small task. Each challenge requires a different approach. There are constantly unknowns to address in my job. This challenge, however, creates part of the excitement and verve to my work. It ensures constant professional growth for me and my colleagues.
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4. My career goals...
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Kelli uses her computer to communicate with colleagues, coordinate meetings, and conduct research for reports.
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My career goals are to establish effective models for public engagement and outreach in health and medical research. I consider statements from experts who recognize that incorporating public engagement and outreach in the medical research process is an enormous paradigm shift in the research arena. While great strides have been accomplished in the last few years at NIH and other Federal agencies, I think we have quite a way to go. So I see many opportunities ahead to establish public engagement and outreach as a standard practice, and hope to contribute models for this practice that can be replicated and used on a broader scale.
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5. When I'm not working, I like to...
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When I’m not working, I love spending time with my family. I also enjoy reading about leadership, and personal and spiritual development. My favorite authors and leadership personalities are Steven Covey, Anthony Robbins, Tavis Smiley, Joyce Meyer, and Creflo Dollar.
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