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EMT interest turns into ride-along opportunity
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By ELISA SAND, Staff Reporter
| 03/10/2009 |
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Madison High School's Health Occupations Class has helped Laura Niedert focus on a career, and it's opened up other opportunities for the senior who's first interest was anatomy.
Niedert said that the Health Occupations Class, which is taught at the Madison Community Hospital, has helped her decide what degrees to pursue in college so that she can become a physical therapist.
Due to her involvement in the class, Niedert said, she is pursuing another interest: becoming an EMT.
Niedert is unable to become EMT certified until after graduation, but through partnerships developed for the class, teacher Dotta Jo Walker was able to set up a shadowing opportunity for Niedert.
"It's just another thing the hospital has allowed a student to do," Niedert said.
That opportunity involves carrying an EMT pager and riding along on ambulance calls. At the end of her first weekend, Niedert had gone along on seven calls.
"It's not an easy job," she said. "They're very fast and efficient at their job. You can't be afraid to help the people in need. It's been a great eye-opener."
While she couldn't speak on the details of the individual calls, Niedert said, what she's seen so far has not discouraged her from pursuing EMT certification.
Becoming certified is about a $700 investment between the testing and certification requirements. Niedert's hope is to achieve certification and be an EMT while going to college at Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall.
"Emergency Medical Services has been great to allow me to ride along," Niedert said.
The ride-alongs in the ambulance are separate from the Health Occupations Class, which has provided several opportunities for students to "test-drive" what they want to do.
MHS Guidance Counselor Craig Peterson said students have had numerous opportunities, such as scrubbing in and observing surgeries, and touring a cadaver room at USD which is generally reserved for medical students nearing completion.
Niedert said those opportunities and others have allowed her and her classmates to decide what they can and cannot handle.
"One girl fainted in surgery," she said, indicating she probably won't be looking at a medical career that involves surgery. "Another had to sit down while watching a movie of a surgical procedure."
Niedert she that she's grateful to have had the experience.
"It's an awesome experience," Niedert said. "I'm so glad to be in the class."
Those opportunities wouldn't be there, she said, if the hospital workers weren't willing to allow students to follow them around; if community members didn't give their consent to allow students to watch; and if other professionals (like dentists, funeral directors and chiropractors) didn't consent to giving students the opportunity to observe their business.
"Our students have more access to the medical profession than any other group," Peterson said. "This is by far the best program."
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