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Mount Notre Dame Senior Goes to ‘Med School’
For many students entering their senior year of high school, the most difficult question they will face will be, “What are you going to major in at college?” Mount Notre Dame Senior Sarah Bitter of Loveland, wasn’t exactly sure how she would answer that question. Hoping to find more direction and hone in on her interests, Sarah applied and was one of twenty students selected from a pool of close to 200 area high school students to participate in a Health Careers Exploration Program (HCARE) at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. The selection process required two letters of recommendation from Sarah’s math and science teachers, an extensive application, a written essay and a high school transcript.
The HCARE Program is an intensive, five-week enrichment program for juniors or seniors in  high school interested in careers in the health and biomedical sciences. The program curriculum included academic classes, different career choice presentations and shadowing physicians twice a week. Sarah received hands-on experience in science labs, learned study skills, attended analytical reading and critical-thinking sessions and competed in quiz bowl competitions. By the end of the program, Sarah had received over 20 hours of instruction in biology, chemistry and math; had worked with computer simulation and design to build a bridge using toothpicks; and conducted math calculations in order to learn more about medical dosage.
Sarah toured the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, University Hospital (specifically Respiratory Therapy and Air Care), Children’s Hospital, UC Medical School Gross Anatomy Labs, Hoxworth Blood Center, CSI/Robotics and the Standardized Patient Learning Lab. She also took field trips to Ethicon Endo-Surgery Institute, The Drake Center and the Genome Research Institute. Sarah’s favorite part was at the Ethicon-Endo Surgery Institute where she used a simulator to remove a gallbladder and when she used Ethicon instruments to staple an artificial stomach.
As part of the program, Sarah learned about careers, financial aid, prerequisites and employment opportunities from different health-related professionals in the fields of radiation oncology, communication disorders, genetic counseling, physical therapy, occupational therapy, rehabilitation services, emergency medicine, biomedical engineering, pharmacy and nursing. Sarah also received hands-on training on how to intubate a patient, take blood pressure and pulse, conduct reflex tests, check for ear infections and tumors restricting vision and to conduct balance and strength tests.
The best part of the program for Sarah was her opportunities to shadow physicians. She had to choose between shadowing residents in internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology and pediatrics. Sarah selected pediatrics and was matched with a pediatrician whom she shadowed at both University and Children’s Hospitals. Sarah observed clinical rounds and patient to patient contact, including the opportunity to examine newborn babies, test for jaundice and listen to newborn infants’ hearts and lungs. Sarah also shadowed in the neonatal intensive care unit and in the pediatric hematology and oncology department.
“My HCARE experience was so much more than I ever expected. It helped me to understand what occupations in healthcare that I would like to pursue and other occupations that I am not really interested in. The physicians that I shadowed were wonderful teachers and role models and solidified my interest in healthcare.”
Written By: clehrter
Date Posted: 9/28/2009 12:04 PM
Number of Views: 13015
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