Southwest Health System is accepting applications for one more day for its Summer Intern Program at Southwest Memorial Hospital. The opportunity provides local high school students with hands-on experience in health care careers, allowing them to determine whether health care is a career they would be interested in pursuing.
The program runs from Wednesday, June 3, through Friday, June 26. Students will participate in two to three half-day department rotations Monday through Friday, matched to their areas of interest, along with weekly Thursday skills sessions covering wound care, IV starts, injections and other clinical procedures.
Program coordinator Meghan Higman told The Journal that the internship gives students one-on-one opportunities they might not receive during typical shadowing experiences. She said she has also heard from students interested in learning about accounting and finance, something the hospital is working to arrange.
“I think that’s a little fun and different,” Higman said. “I’m not sure how that’s going to come together, because we’re still in the application phase, but we’re willing to see what we can do for others that have other interests.”
Interns begin with new employee orientation on June 3 and start rotations the following day. The program helps students explore a wide range of health care fields, from nursing and pediatrics to radiology technology, occupational therapy and more.
“We have a month full of opportunities to get them to rotate through to their areas of interest,” Higman said. “They share what their primary interest is, and I try to make sure that they have ample opportunity to visit within that interest, while also adding a few other options.”
The program has had about 10 to 12 students consistently each year and has not had to turn applicants away. The small group size allows for personalized attention in each department. Higman said the hospital has hired certified nursing assistants and nurses who previously participated in the summer program.
“It’s always fun to see the direction that people go,” Higman said. “They’ll come in thinking they want to do, everybody thinks they want to do pediatrics and deliver babies, and then once they see kind of the breadth of some of the other options, they’re wanting to spend time in that … and sometimes it solidifies what they want to do. So, it’s kind of fun to just see the confirmation of their interests solidify.”
Applications must be submitted by the night of Friday, April 17. The application process includes an online form, a letter of recommendation and a short essay. Interviews will be held Thursday, May 7, from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and Friday, May 8, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., with a parent or guardian required to attend. A celebration for interns and their parents is planned for the final week of the internship.
“I think it’s a great opportunity for youth before they commit to going to college and committing to a program to really experience health care and kind of have a good idea of what they want to do, and as our way of career pipelining, no matter where these students end up working in the future,” Higman said. “How do we spark interest and passion for caring for others early on?”
Applications are available online at www.swhealth.org/education. For more information, contact Higman at (970) 564-2160 or MHigman@swhealth.org.
