BROOKSVILLE, Fla. — Students in Hernando and Citrus counties are getting some real-life lessons when it comes to the field of medicine.
It’s part of a groundbreaking partnership with Tampa General Hospital North. This new program is expanding healthcare education and workforce development opportunities for local students.
Packed inside a makeshift classroom, the future healthcare professionals of tomorrow are learning from today’s best.
“We have three days of orientation to get them prepared, to come in the springtime to do observation hours so that they can earn their certifications at the end of their program,” said Jennifer Siem, senior director of strategic growth for Tampa General Hospital.
This is all made possible thanks to a new partnership this year among Tampa General Hospital and both Hernando and Citrus County Schools — putting high school students on a fast track to careers in the medical field, all the while staying local.
“To make them better healthcare providers in the future, but also to create a pathway for future employment so that the students can work where they live,” said Siem. “And we can really make an impact on the shortage of healthcare providers in these communities.”
More than $600,000 will be invested from the three hospitals that make up TGH North, providing direct funding and support to those high school programs focused on health careers. This will help students like Kaitlyn Kranz, a senior at Nature Coast Technical High School.
“I would like to go into pediatrics,” said Kranz. “That would probably be the best option for me.”
Kranz said she and her classmates are getting a head-start by learning from professionals in the medical field.
“People will always need healthcare,” she said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re a nurse, if you’re a doctor, if you’re a PCT — people are always going to need it. I think it’s just such a rewarding program to be in, and I think that it’s one of those fields that you can do whatever you want.”
“It’s very awesome to learn about because health has a lot of things, very amazing things and topics to learn about,” said Alison Rivera, a senior at Central High School. “Not just about one thing, health is a lot of things and it’s very beneficial to learn about.”
They’re also not the only ones to be taking something away from the program.
“Being able to observe the students, seeing what they’re learning in real life and by observing them taking action on the skills that they’ve learned, I think, is really exciting,” said Siem.
An exciting time in the field of medicine.
TGH’s partnership with Hernando and Citrus County Schools will cover the next three years. Programming support will include those clinical experiences, scholarship support, and medical equipment donations, to name a few.
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