Mini medical school program inspires young students to pursue careers in medicine
By Denise Dador
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QUARTZ HILL, California (KABC) — Did you ever dream of being a doctor when you were a kid?
Many kids drop this idea because they didn’t get the proper guidance.
Now, one local community came up with a way to plant this seed early with a mini medical school.
Jumping while breathing through a straw shows these potential future medical professionals what it’s like to have an asthma attack.
“Part of your lungs starts to clog up, and it causes you to cough,” said Brayden Hess, a Quartz Hill fourth grader.
This nine-month “mini med” school at Quartz Hill Elementary is the first on the West Coast to introduce fourth graders to medical careers. The idea is to show these kids it’s okay to aim high.
“They’ve heard voices that have told them, ‘You’re not smart enough, you’re not good enough, or perhaps you don’t have enough money.’ So it’s about creating opportunities for our junior colleagues in the making,” said Dr. Mario Affinati with Palmdale Regional Medical Center.
Each of the 24 students is outfitted with scrubs and white coats.
“It’s a very visual approach, something you can feel, you can touch, you know, it gives you the vision of what it would be like,” said Nana Deeb, CEO of Palmdale Regional Medical Center.
Doctors teach the classes. The course will also include sheep organ dissections.
“What I’ll probably be is maybe a surgeon, if I get to dissecting soon,” said Hess.
“I’m really excited that I’m going to be learning about the anatomy of the body, and learning this will help me help people later in life,” said fourth grader Ruby Lewis.
This program comes at a time when healthcare is facing a growing shortage.
“Antelope Valley has over 500,000 people, and the ratio of providers to patients can go anywhere from one to 4,000 to one to 60,000,” said Affinati.
Plans are in the works to expand.
“We’re going to start with internal medicine. Then we’re going to go to family practice next. And we’re going to start bringing in a new school and a new group of kids every semester,” said Deeb.
Students say being a doctor is not just a job; it’s a calling.
“It’s not just because of the money. You’ve got to help people and check people and make sure they’re okay,” said fourth grader Patrick Hutchinson.
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