Spotlight: Summer Staff

Summer workers at Cape Cod Healthcare share favorite parts of the job, memorable moments and their responsibilities during a typical work day at Cape Cod Hospital, Falmouth Hospital and Yarmouth Primary Care. Meet Alyssa, Caitlin, Mallorey and Graydon.

Alyssa Boucher

Alyssa is working as a nursing assistant at Falmouth Hospital this summer. In her role, she takes vitals, answers call bells, assists with toileting, ambulation, and feeding, and all other basic needs. Alyssa is a rising senior at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut, enrolled in a holistically endorsed BSN program. After she graduates in May 2025, Alyssa plans to become an RN.

• What brought you to Cape Cod Healthcare? One of my good friends works here over the summers, and she described the staff as feeling more like a family, and different than any hospital setting she had experienced before. So many nurses have taken me under their wing, showing me any new task or situation they encounter to assist me with my learning. They know I am eager to learn, and they are all eager to teach me. 

• Day in the life as nursing assistant: I typically work a 7 a.m.-3 p.m. shift with my home base being the third floor. I am able to consult with the nurses about the things I am seeing with our patients and I am able to see situations, patient conditions and treatments that are consistent with what I am learning in nursing school. It is so gratifying to continue to develop my clinical judgement before even becoming an RN, and learn as much as I can before finishing nursing school.

• What are some of your favorite parts about your job? I love helping patients feel heard and respected, and provide as much comfort as possible to aid with healing. 

• Memorable moments: Conversations I have with patients about their lives and who they are as people outside of the hospital. Many of them love to talk about the careers they had or projects they've done. It is so important that we see our patients as more than who they are when they are in our care, and see them in a larger lens, as professionals, family members, and people independent of their hospital room and present condition.

• Home base: I live in Plymouth from May to August when I am home from college. 

• Future plans: I am currently in a nursing program and plan to work as a nurse at the bedside. I hope to someday go back to school and complete the requirements to become a nurse practitioner.

Caitlin Allsopp

Caitlin works as a summer helper at Falmouth Hospital. She is currently enrolled in the health technology program at Upper Cape Technical Regional High School, where she will be entering her junior year this fall. 

• Why Cape Cod Healthcare: I have heard wonderful things about Cape Cod Healthcare for many years. The dedication and respect they have for their employees is what inspired me to apply. I have always wanted to be in the medical field growing up and when I saw this opportunity to be a student helper, I knew it would be a great way to start my journey.
• Day in the life: I arrive at Falmouth Hospital at 8 a.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. I wipe down all surfaces and machines. Then I make sure every inpatient room has gloves, wipes, suction cups and gait belts. I also empty trash or any soil linen bins. I stock the linen carts, precaution carts and vital sign carts. Whenever a patient needs to be transported to either another room in the hospital or discharged, I take them. Throughout the day, I run any errands for staff or patients.
• Memorable moment: On my first day, I was talking with a patient and she asked me what I see for my future. She was telling me how to achieve every goal I listed. I enjoyed talking to her and the advice she gave was wonderful.
• Future plans: The end goal for me is to be a labor and delivery nurse. There are many steps into achieving that position. I will have to work as a CNA first, transition to an RN position, and work my way up from there. It will be challenging, but I am willing to put in the work. I love working in the healthcare field and I could never see myself doing anything else. 
• My hometown: I live in Sagamore Beach, a village in Bourne.
• In my spare time: I enjoy dancing at my local dance studio. I have been dancing for 13 years. I am a part of the outreach team there and we give back to the community by volunteering and performing for the public. I have had a passion for dance my whole life and it will never go away. When I don’t have dance, my mom and I explore different beaches on the Cape. There is nothing like the beaches here on Cape Cod.

Mallorey Egan

Mallorey works as a summer helper at Yarmouth Primary Care. Mallorey is going into her senior year at Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School.  

• Why Cape Cod Healthcare: My mom has worked in healthcare my whole life. I have always been amazed at her work and love to see the difference she makes in people’s lives. Dennis-Yarmouth High School also hosted speakers from Cape Cod Hospital to give a talk about summer internship opportunities, and I was very interested in trying it.
• Day in the life at Yarmouth Primary Care: My workdays are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. I start my day checking all vacant exam rooms to make sure they are cleaned, stocked and organized. During my shift, I check the communal areas, such as the break room, conference room and bathrooms. I keep the office clean throughout the day for our staff and patients. I also do little things in-between, such as check expiration dates and provide my supervisor, Cheryl Cirillo, with any expired inventory. Before I leave for the day at the end of every shift, I finish by cleaning the office and lab waiting room. 
• Favorite parts of the job: Most definitely all the nurses and doctors and how kind they are. My favorite part is getting to learn and see how a doctor’s office operates. Everyone who works here is very understanding and patient. My boss, Cheryl, is one of the main reasons that I enjoy being here. She makes it a very welcoming work environment. 
• Where are you from originally? I am from the Cape and have lived here all 17 years of my life.   
• Future plans: I see myself working in the healthcare field after high school. I plan to take a course to become a CNA and work in a nursing home. After a couple years, I would like to go to nursing school and become an RN. 
• In my spare time: I love to read and write poetry, and spend time with my friends and family. I love to go to the beach, especially to watch the sunset and sunrise at one of my favorite beaches—Gray’s Beach in Yarmouth. I also very much enjoy learning about healthcare and mental health in my free time. I love understanding and learning how a person feels and thinks. 

Graydon Nolen

Graydon returned for his second year this summer as a patient access representative in the ER department at Cape Cod Hospital. Graydon graduated from high school in Brooklyn, New York, and will be attending Yale University starting in August.

• What brought you to Cape Cod Healthcare? The staff are so fantastic, always incredibly kind, helpful and inspiring with how they work with the injured and ill or a newbie like me with many questions. They are always happy to help. 
• A day in the life: I work three days a week as a patient access representative, which entails gathering demographic and insurance information of patients.
• Favorite parts of your job: I love being able to meet all of the different people in the emergency room. When I register patients, I meet people from all walks of life. I see infants who have just been born to people who are 103. Getting to meet each person is a pleasure.
• Memorable moments: When I left the hospital to return for my senior year of high school in Brooklyn last year, my coworkers were incredibly thoughtful, and gave me some going-away gifts. They wrote me a card, gave me candy, and one of my coworkers even built a model boat from scratch!
• Cape connection: I have grown up as much on Cape Cod as much as I have in Brooklyn, New York, where I go to school. I spend every summer and all the major holidays on Cape Cod to see my family. One of the things I love about Cape Cod is how it is beautiful year-round, not just in the summer. 
• Future plans: I hope to one day become a doctor. The reason I applied for a job in the Emergency Room was to determine if that was a career I wanted to pursue, and so far, it has pushed me further down that path. 
• In my spare time: I play the trumpet in a swing band called the Sound Dunes. We practice and perform about once a week. When we perform, we generally go to community centers like parks or perform at nursing homes. Last summer, I attended 4 C’s to get my EMT license. I also like to sail and I swim a lot.