Alexandra (Ally) Kellogg, Sharp Grossmont Hospital volunteer

Ally Kellogg works as an emergency medical technician (EMT) for a private company and as a medical scribe for a local clinic. On Saturdays, she volunteers at Sharp Grossmont Hospital in the Emergency Department (ED), considered one of the busiest in the state with more than 100,000 annual visits.

Ally’s role is to calm anxious visitors whose loved ones are undergoing assessment and treatment behind the large glass doors. She also trains other hospital ED volunteers. Since 2015, Ally has logged more than 475 hours of volunteer service at the hospital.

Mark Todd Twichel, Emergency Department Manager at Sharp Grossmont Hospital said, “Volunteers fulfill a vital role in meeting the needs of our patients, their families and visitors. Ally really represents the best of the best.”

Prior to volunteering at the hospital, Ally found herself accompanying family members and friends to hospital emergency rooms and learned firsthand the worries and fears of ED visitors. “I can empathize with hospital visitors because I’ve been in their place,” Ally said. “My mom has worked as a nurse assistant so healthcare runs in our family.”

As a student at Helix High School (class of 2013), the native of La Mesa volunteered more than 300 hours in the school’s sports medicine clinic as an athletic trainer. Last year, the 23-year-old graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in biology from San Diego State University. In 2016, she also earned her Wilderness First Responder (WFR) certification from the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

Grossmont Healthcare District holds an annual awards event to recognize front-line volunteer caregivers and other individuals like Ally who improve health and quality of life for East Region residents. Nominated by their peers, honorees are considered as true unsung heroes of healthcare whose day-in and day-out work might not otherwise be celebrated. For more information on criteria, nomination deadlines, and more, visit our Healthcare Heroes special events page.

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Source: Grossmount Health district