By: Sabrina Ahmed
sahmed@klkntv.com
The chance for an internship came early for a few lucky students. Six high school students followed doctors for a month and a half, working with patients and researching projects. It's an experience they'll never forget.
Kids dream of being rock stars, royalty, and doctors, but often times, that's all it is-a dream. Doctors at St. Elizabeth's wanted to take young students and show them what it was really like. They say they hoped it would keep those childhood dreams alive.
"I know for sure that I'm going to be in the medical field." Kiristen Winters shadowed an Anesthesiologist for six weeks as an intern. Being one of six students chosen out of all that applied was a big honor-and what she says was a once in a lifetime chance.
"It lets me know that I can keep pushing-like if I've gotten this opportunity, I can keep pushing. I can get more opportunities to see more things," Winters said.
Doctor Arthur Molar was Kiristen's mentor this summer. He's been co-director of the intern program for all five years. He says even though the future of healthcare is uncertain, he hopes programs like this will recruit even more doctors to the field.
"If just one of them achieves their goal or even comes close to that goal and does something else in the allied health field then you feel rewarded that you've accomplished something," Dr. Molar said.
The students worked in a variety of fields, from Anesthesiology to Dialysis. They say they also learned that the field is more work than it is glamour and many are prepared for the challenge.
