Career and Leadership Development Academy Cohort Two, Healthcare Day Blog

Throughout the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce’s Career and Leadership Development Academy ten month program, each of the eight middle schools are assigned a day to write about their experiences. 37 students from across all eight New Hanover County middle schools participated in the second industry exploration day in Cohort Two, Healthcare, on October 4 at Novant Health NHRMC. In addition to learning about the careers at the hospital, they had the opportunity to hear from Thrive Family Dental, Atlantic Prosthetics, and Port City Animal Hospital, three other healthcare related career opportunities. Below is the second blog write up from Cohort Two of the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce’s Career and Leadership Academy experience. 

Thinking of going into the field of health care? Smart choice! We started our trip off with a wonderful speech from Dr. Stephen Hill from the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce. He told us about the inside of the hospital. There is so much more than just doctors and nurses. At Novant Health there are approximately 8,000 people on staff! On top of that there are 700 patient beds. Next, we saw the COO of NHRMC and future President of Scott’s Hill Medical Center, Coastal Market at Novant Health,  Dr. Laurie Whalin. She introduced us to several hospital staff members. We heard from Dr. Heather Davis, a family doctor. She told us when she was younger she changed her mind about what she wanted to be and is so happy she did! Ashley Hefner, a nurse, realized being a nurse is harder than it looks. We also heard from Dan Goodman, Vice President, that in college he decided to go into healthcare management. Amy Acres, Chief Nurse Executive, decided to become a healthcare professional because of being a patient in a hospital. 

After the introductions, we split up into small groups and rotated through four stations. First we went to respiratory. Respiratory therapists treat problems with your lungs or breathing. The healthcare provider there spent time teaching us about how to use the equipment and when to use it. He had a fake head to show us how he uses the breathing mask and how lungs fill up with air when you breathe in. There also was a machine that monitored breathing and could give the patient air as quickly as 60 breaths per minute. The machine also gives certain breaths to different people. For example, if a kid was having trouble breathing he would not get many breaths per minute and not as much air come in at once. This is because if they got too much their lungs would pop like balloons. That wouldn’t be very good, so the people who work in respiratory care have to practice giving the right amount of air and the right amount of air per minute. But if it's an adult they will need much more because their lungs are much bigger than a kids. Respiratory therapists need to know how to take care of patients of all ages. 

Then we moved over to the pharmacy. They have over 80 employees there in total! They make medicine for patients in the hospital. The medicine made for patients out of the hospital is a separate thing. In the hospital pharmacy they make iv bags, medications, etc. They also had this cool chute that they used to send the medicine to the patients in the hospital. They just had to press what floor and room and it would go up very quickly! The Pharmacist then showed us the lab they have where it is sterile. That means they can’t contaminate any germs into the medicine. If contamination happens, it could be dangerous for the patient and they could have very bad side effects. Does it sound like you would want this job? You need a four-year undergraduate program followed by a four-year doctorate program to be a Pharmacist. 

Our last two stations were rehabilitation and the laboratory. Freddy and Jennifer introduced us to all of the different parts of rehab. Jennifer is an intern from UNCW. In the front of the room they help you regain skills you may have lost such as walking and standing. In the back there was a small grocery store, kitchen, bedrooms, beach with sand, boardwalk, golf course green, car, and pool. They are used to help patients practice doing those things when they get back home. One of our students tried to grocery shop using only one arm and hand, to experience how hard it could be if you had a stroke or an injury. There were physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech therapists to help all the patients. 

After that we went to the laboratory. The director of the lab, Kevin, talked to us and showed us around. They examine and analyze blood, body fluids, tissues and cells. Then they give test results to the doctors to plan treatment for their patients. He showed us all the parts of the lab such as the blood bank. There were petri dishes that showed all the bacteria. When you are sick you have to get your mouth swabbed and that goes on the petri dishes to show the bacteria. Amy talked to us about the blood. Did you know that O neg is universal? The rarest blood type is AB positive and if you have that then you can take any blood. 

During lunch, we had two Novant Health staff come and talk to us about adaptability and changes. The two people that came and did that presentation were Julian Wiliams and Rick. They talked about the meaning of adaptability and why it was an important skill to have in a person. They also talked about the meaning of a “learners mindset” and what that meant in a person. They said how you should have the willingness to learn and grow from your mistakes instead of giving up. They ended their presentation with both of them encouraging us to ask questions and seek answers all the time to help us strengthen our minds.

After lunch, we heard from more speakers from the field of healthcare. Have you ever wanted to have a healthcare job but did not want to deal with blood pints and placing a pipe down a person's throat? But you love pets and always brush your teeth? Then a dentist could be the job for you!

Dr.Ben Friberg, the owner of Thrive Family Dental, shared with us what his job is like 

and what it takes to be a dentist. Dental school is very difficult, apparently only 1 in 10 people get accepted. Dr. Ben actually started off wanting to be a construction worker and contractor, but he found out that job was not for him. He decided to be something to help his community more.That is when he went back to school to be a dentist. Dr. Ben brought along his dog named Meadow. Meadow is a support dog that helps his patient feel better when they have surgery or a tooth pulled and they are not feeling good. Dr. Ben also reminded us to not forget we sometimes have to “choose your hard”. School is hard but you have to pick the hard that will get you where you want to be in life. 

Our last speakers were volunteers from the hospital. Have you ever thought about having your dog become a support dog? They can provide support to people in the hospital. There is a lot to know before your dog becomes a support dog. First the dog will go to train at a place like Paws 4 People.  They have to complete thirteen tests and it takes about anywhere from 6 months to 2 years, depending on the certification of the dog. Your dog has to be a total of 2 years old to become a support dog. Those are the main things you need to know for your dog to be a support dog.  

Stephanie Kraybill encouraged all of the students to take advantage of all the offers you get in highschool with CTE that specialize in health care. This is a great way to get ahead for college and gain experience in the field. 

We want to thank all the wonderful people who took time out of their day to be with us and teach us about these amazing healthcare divisions and what really happens in day-to-day lives . So do you still want to be in health care ?