Each year, May is nationally observed as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. With origins dating back to 1978, it’s a time to recognize and encourage the study, observance, and celebration of the vital role of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in American history. Throughout the month, events will take place in our community to celebrate Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Below are a few of those upcoming events.
Community events
May 13, 1–3 p.m.
Celebrate AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander) Heritage Month at the library by experiencing Chinese culture. Participants will enjoy lively demonstrations of cultural activities, hands on participation, and food. Fun for the whole family! Find more information here.
May 5-7
Attend this three-day international festival featuring food, dance, and music from cultures around the world. The festival will be at the Greene County Expo Center in Xenia. Find more information here.
May 17, 5:30 p.m.-7 p.m.
A panel discussion with members of our AAPI community. Listen and learn as panelists share personal experiences growing up or immigrating to the United States. Discover differences and similarities we share with the AAPI cultures. Find more information here.
May 27-28
The 29th annual Asian Festival offers a wide variety of entertainment, culture/art performances, marketplace, an Asian food court, arts and crafts, and health screenings at no cost. Find more information here.
Employee highlights
In honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we’re shining a spotlight on two employees: Danielle Aka and Rohit Bhandari.
Meet Danielle Aka
Danielle Aka works in the operating room at Kettering Health Dayton as the Staff Nurse Specialist. She serves as Adjunct Faculty for the nursing program at Kettering College. We asked her a few questions about her life, her career, and working at Kettering Health.
Tell us a little about your background. Where are you from? How long have you worked here? How long have you been in your role?
My name is Danielle, and I was born and raised in Toronto, Canada. I am biracial, with my mom coming from the U.S. and my dad coming from Okinawa, Japan. My Okinawan and Japanese culture are incredibly important to me and played a huge role in my upbringing.
I have been working for Kettering Health for about five and a half years and went to Kettering College for nursing school. I currently work at KH Dayton in the operating room as the Staff Nurse Specialist, while also working as Adjunct Faculty at Kettering College in the nursing program.
What are your greatest accomplishments at KH?
While working as a staff nurse in the OR at KH Dayton, I was able to complete my Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) with a dual emphasis in nursing education and lifestyle medicine. This allowed me to pursue the current roles in which I am working as a nurse educator.
What drew you to work here at KH?
I had a great experience as a student at Kettering College, so when I was able to get a job working at Kettering Health after nursing school, I was happy to stay and begin my nursing career here. The thing that continues to draw me here is the amazing team that I get to work with every day at KH Dayton in the OR. We truly have some of the best people!
What inspires you in your job?
My greatest passion is education and mentorship. I love being able to help others learn, grow, and thrive in their work or education. Working in roles that allow me to do just that continues to inspire me to be the best educator that I can be.
What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned over your career?
Regardless of how hard we try, how much we prepare, or how positive we try to be, there will always be challenges. This applies not only when taking care of our patients but also when working as a team, leading others, and striving to achieve our goals. What matters most is how we encounter, overcome, and move forward through those challenges.
Meet Rohit Bhandari
Rohit Bhandari is the Manager of Laboratory Services at Kettering Health Hamilton. We asked him a few questions about his life, his career, and working at Kettering Health.
Tell us a little about your background. Where are you from? How long have you worked here? How long have you been in your role?
I live with my wife and daughter in Cincinnati. My hobbies are travelling, reading, and having fun with family and friends. I am a laboratory student/professional and have been working in the lab since I graduated with my Certificate in Medical Laboratory Science from Tribhuvan University’s Institute of Medicine in Kathmandu, Nepal in 2001.
I completed my Bachelor of Science in Medical Lab Technology from B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences in Dharan, Nepal in 2010 and pursued my Master of Science in Clinical Biochemistry at Tribhuvan University’s Institute of Medicine in Kathmandu, Nepal in 2011. While pursing my master’s, I had an opportunity to move to the U.S. in 2013. I continued my master’s degree at the University of Rhode Island in Medical Laboratory Science while also working as a Medical Laboratory Scientist at South County Health in Rhode Island.
After graduation, I moved to Ohio in 2016 and worked at a reference laboratory at University Hospitals in Sandusky and Cleveland Clinic for six years.
I had an opportunity to work and learn in various facets of laboratory medicine to grow myself as a great lab professional and a leader in laboratory science.
What are your greatest accomplishments at KH?
I joined Kettering Health as a supervisor at KH Hamilton in late December of last year. I received great support from my team members and leaders to work in this role. After three months, an opportunity arose to serve the beautiful Hamilton community through laboratory service as a Laboratory Manager. With the support and encouragement of system laboratory leadership and Hamilton hospital leadership, I decided to accept an offer to serve for a level patient care and excellent patient experience.
What drew you to work here at KH?
I was looking for an opportunity to work as a team leader in the laboratory. I applied for a position at Kettering Health Hamilton in the lab. I had a great experience with a member of Talent Acquisition while I was asked a preliminary assessment question as a potential candidate. I was so excited for opportunities and expectations that she explained at the end of phone interview that I was called in for an in-person interview. I was so impressed by leadership and their positive attitude toward a professional like me to work at the lab at the time of interview. Cincinnati is, of course, my favorite place and is a plus to draw me to this area.
What inspires you in your job?
I had great interest in science and mathematics since my childhood. There is a culture that if you want to grow in healthcare or engineering, you must excel in science and mathematics. I was also interested in research in biology. I first pursued a bachelor’s in biology, but it was hard to get the job in the field I was interested in. I saw several opportunities in laboratory science like serving the patient, educating students and employees, and conducting research.
What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned over your career?
There is nothing more important than serving patients and there is still a lot to do in the field of laboratory science all over the world to make it a better profession.
Resources
AAPI Month is not only a time to celebrate the beauty of the culture, but to honor the traditions and history of the Asian American and Pacific Islander people. To help give everyone the opportunity to do that, we’re sharing resources and providing a cultural highlight in honor of the observance. Check out details below to learn more about the contributions Asian American and Pacific Islander people have made throughout history.
America Is in the Heart by Carlos Bulosan (book)
This socially significant classic written by a Filipino American in 1946, provides a perspective on the United States during the 1930s through the eyes of a migrant laborer from the Philippines who is subjected to racial discrimination and violence.
Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen (book)
Chen, who was born and raised in Singapore and currently lives in San Francisco, has crafted an action-packed tale that revolves around two Asian American women with contrasting personalities, who come together unintentionally to establish a fake designer handbag empire worldwide.
Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cath Park Hong (book)
The book examines the notion of racial identity, consciousness of race, and systemic racism. Hong delves into topics such as depression, the pressure on Asian-Americans to demonstrate their worth in a society predominantly dominated by White people, as well as the enmity that can emerge within the Asian-American community.
Desi Ladki Life (podcast)
The primary focus of this podcast is on the lives of South Asian millennials in America and the various topics that impact them. Its founders identified a gap in the podcast landscape and aimed to create a space where issues spanning social justice, pop culture, and advocacy could be discussed and explored.
Cultural highlight
After the bombing at Pearl Harbor in the 1940s, many Japanese Americans were moved to incarceration camps. Below is a piece of art from a 1942 scrapbook painted by a student about life at Tule Lake Incarceration Camp.
Historical figure: Dr. Kazue Togasaki
The impact Asian American and Pacific Islander people have made throughout history can be seen in nearly every facet of life. Below is someone who greatly influenced the healthcare industry as we know it today.
Dr. Togasaki’s medical experience dates to 1906. During the aftermath of the Great San Francisco earthquake, she volunteered at a local hospital to treat wounded survivors. In 1933, Dr. Togasaki became one of the first Japanese American women to become a doctor in the United States. After the bombing at Pearl Harbor, she was moved to a camp for people of Japanese descent. During her time at the camp, she set up her own medical facility, helping sick patients and delivering babies. Her contributions in the medical field inspired many women of Asian descent to pursue a career in the medical field. Dr. Togasaki was named the Most Distinguished Woman of 1970 by the San Francisco Examiner and delivered over 10,000 babies in her career.
