NIAGARA, Ontario: Grade 11 and 12 students serious about careers in healthcare will go behind the scenes to learn about educational and work opportunities in Niagara as part of a March Break camp the Niagara Health System (NHS) is hosting with six community partners.
Take CARE of Your Future (Career Awareness and Resource Exploration) will be offered for the second year in a row, from March 16 to 20, 2009. Twenty-four students from a variety of Niagara secondary schools were selected by the school boards to take part in this unique event.
"Canada is facing a critical shortage of health-care workers, and this career exploration program is an exciting recruitment opportunity for the NHS," says Nancy Speck, NHS Volunteer Resources Coordinator and co-organizer of the event. "The program is designed to motivate students in Niagara to explore careers in healthcare in our region and provide them with important post-secondary and career information."
Community partners such as Brock University, Niagara College, Business Education Council, District School Board of Niagara, Niagara Catholic District School Board, and Niagara Workforce Planning Board, provide resources, support and planning expertise to the initiative.
Students will participate in a number of activities and interactive presentations. All but one event will be held at the NHS Welland site, with highlights as follows:
- Monday, March 16, 1:30 p.m., Welland site lab: Presentations about the hospital lab and X-ray department.
- Tuesday, March 17, 9 a.m., Welland site Auditorium: Students will feel first-hand the impacts of physical disabilities. For example, they might be splinted, have their eyes covered or placed in wheelchairs for the day. .
- Wednesday, March 18:
- 9 a.m., Brock campus: Visit to the Brock University nursing simulation lab, where robots simulate patients to provide hands-on education opportunities.
- 1 p.m., Welland site Fracture Clinic: Students will apply casts with Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Bryan Rittenhouse and Orthopedic Technician Billie-Jo Whitty.
- Thursday, March 19, 9 a.m., Welland site Auditorium: Interactive session with Niagara College, focusing on Paramedics program and Recreational Therapy programs.
- Thursday, March 19, 11 a.m., Welland site: Tour of the Extended Care Unit.
- Friday, March 20, 9 a.m., Welland site: Tour of the Emergency Department.
For more information, please contact:
Caroline Bourque Wiley
Consultant, Public Affairs
905-378-4647, ext. 43113
cwiley@niagarahealth.on.ca
