Samantha and her dad, Sean, are all smiles as they hold her two bachelor’s degrees.
Samantha Bachochin of Austintown has been on quite a journey with Akron Children’s: patient, volunteer, mentee, employee. If things work out as she plans – becoming a pathologist – she’ll work for Akron Children’s her whole life.
Samantha becomes a volunteer
As a premedicine student at Youngstown State University (YSU), Samantha wanted to volunteer at a hospital and get some clinical hours. “I knew I wanted to go to medical school and become a doctor,” she said. “But I wasn’t exactly sure what kind of doctor I wanted to be.”
Samantha contacted Jamie Demain, Volunteer Services manager at Akron Children’s in Boardman. Samantha’s first volunteer role: guiding visitors around campus during construction for the emergency room expansion project. “I transferred to the surgery department after a few months; they never had a volunteer before,” Samatha recalled. “The nursing staff was so busy, so I’d help in any way I could. I’d also take patients to their cars when they were discharged and going home. I learned so much in that volunteer role.”
Samantha finds mentors
Jamie then introduced Samantha to Dr. Carmen Julius, Akron Children’s pathologist and medical director of the blood bank laboratory. “Samantha came to us as a premed ‘shadow,’ and we split her experience to include multiple days throughout the summer 2023,” he said. “She shadowed with my wife, Dr. Lyn Yakubov, at her ophthalmology practice in Youngstown – as well as throughout our laboratory at Akron Children’s main campus. She attended our conferences, rotated through the laboratory, performed tests and testing, and did clinical pathologic correlations with the patients we treated.”
Samantha and Dr. Julius hit it off instantly. “Our personalities are similar, and we really connected,” she said. “He’s such an amazing doctor, and he introduced me to medical laboratory science. I didn’t realize that field – which focuses on performing and analyzing lab tests on samples of blood, tissues, body fluids and cells – has such a huge impact on patient care and health care in general.”
Drs. Carmen Julius and Lyn Yakubov – Youngstown State University alumni – celebrate Samantha’s graduation.
From volunteer to employee
Samantha liked the lab so much that she became an employee, working part-time as a limited service tech. “I’m like an assistant in the lab,” she explained. “I’ll scan the specimens we receive, spin certain blood samples and do dip tests on urine samples. I’m also there to support the lab technicians with anything they need.”
She credits the lab staff with being open to sharing their knowledge and encouraging her to pursue her goals. “So many others in the laboratory and throughout Akron Children’s have encouraged Samantha,” Dr. Julius said. “She is very adaptable and a lifelong learner. She is becoming stronger and stronger in her self-confidence, and given her level of intelligence and skills, this will enable her to master anything.”
Continuing her education
When Samantha graduated from YSU a few months ago, she earned two degrees. She has Bachelor of Science degrees in biology as well as applied science and forensic science.
Now, she’s participating in the Akron Cooperative Medical Laboratory Science Program. The one-year program is a collaboration among Akron Children’s, Aultman Health Foundation and Summa Health. “I’m in Akron 5 days a week, with the program split into two semesters,” she said. “I’m in a classroom setting for one semester and then going to the different hospital labs to see how they run.”
Samantha is also studying for the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), the standard exam to get into medical school in the United States. “I like all aspects of medicine, but I absolutely love pathology,” she said. “Lab work is so interesting, and there’s so much going on in the lab that people don’t realize.”
Samantha cuddles with her new puppy, Beau.
Long-term goals
Samatha’s goal is to become a pathologist – and the icing on the cake would be to work at Akron Children’s. “If I have the opportunity, I would like to work at Akron Children’s for the rest of my life,” she said. “It’s such a great hospital and a great organization.”
Dr. Julius is confident of Samantha’s bright future. “She’s a throw-back: smart, good-natured, solid and teachable,” he said. “She is a unique find in her generation. She definitely should become a physician. She will always remember where she came from – and that humility will make her a good servant of others in a medical profession.”
