UF medical students inspire local high schoolers interested in healthcare
Cycling through stations, students demonstrated clinical skills — practicing splinting and intubating and learning how to use a stethoscope and ultrasound machine.
While these might be skills medical students practice for the first time during their studies, the students being led through health stations April 17 were high schoolers from across the state of Florida.
The University of Florida College of Medicine hosted the inaugural UF Healthcare Teams of Tomorrow event on campus at the George T. Harrell, M.D., Medical Education Building, attracting students and parents from as far as Jacksonville and Orlando. UF medical students collaborated with faculty to organize the event, aiming to educate and inspire the next generation of health professionals.
“It was an opportunity to show high school students the medical school building and the hospital,” said medical student Trevi Perez, one of the event organizers. “It gave them a chance to listen to doctors, physician assistants and nursing speakers who can spark an interest in a future career.”
During the event, parents also had the opportunity to join information sessions about financial aid and different roles in healthcare, from doctors to physician assistants to registered nurses. UF Health nurse Kelsey Banta, R.N., B.S.N., O.C.N., and Norman Beatty, M.D., FACP, a UF clinical associate professor in the division of infectious diseases and global medicine, participated in discussions with families.