Area Youth HIPEd Up For Healthcare

    According to the State’s Department of Labor, South Dakota’s Health Care industry is projected to be among the largest growth industries through 2030. The industry is projected to add 7,291 workers and grow at a rate of12.4%, much faster than the 8.5% growth projected for all industries. 
    With many more health care workers needed in the future, those in the industry would do well to ‘grease the wheels’ with young people. And that is just what Marshall County Healthcare Center (MCHC) is doing with an educational program that seeks to pique the interest of youth. 
    Last week, fifth graders from both Britton-Hecla and Langford Area descended on MCHC for a program called Healthcare in Partnership with Education (HIPE). According to MCHC Cardiac Rehab Nurse and the Coordinator of HIPE, Allison Tank, the goal of the program is to encourage students to consider a career in healthcare in the face of a critical shortage of healthcare professionals.
     The program was originally designed by the South Dakota Office of Rural Health. The office promoted HIPE Week as well as HOTT (Health Occupations of Today and Tomorrow) starting back in the early 2000s. 
     Last week, as part of HIPE, MCHC invited area fifth graders to their facility for a special day of interactive activities. The youths were welcomed by CFO Erik Peterson and introduced to HIPE members.  The employees shared what type of work they do, places they have worked, education needed, rewarding parts of their jobs and more.  
    Tank explains that each student was then transformed into an adult working in healthcare. They may be Franny the Pharmacist, Randy the Rad Tech, Billie the Bio Med Tech, Nancy the Nurse, Dylan the Dietary Aide, Eli the EMT, Phil the Physical Therapist or others.  They are also given information on their “job”- what type of education is required, job duties, average pay, and job outlook. 
    “The common theme is most every job outlook in healthcare is excellent,” said Tank. She led students on tours, along with fellow nurses Joyce Chapin and Emily Van Lith. 
    Our tour scenario starts out with Tonie the Trauma Teen falling from a tree so we need to call Eli the EMT for help.  Paramedic Logan Roehr then gave the students a tour of the ambulance, which is always a highlight for students.  
    The tour continues through the ER, radiology, and lab.  This year Toni Mattson was in the ER and showed the students some of the equipment needed to care for patients. They also had the opportunity to give a “tetanus shot” to an orange.  In CT and X-ray, Nikki Kotzer showed the students the equipment as well as images from an abdominal CT and x-rays of broken and repaired bones.  
    It was exciting for students to see the new lab that just opened in December. Lab Director Jackie Veflin had a microscope set up for the students to see blood cells.  It was pointed out that Larry the Lab Tech (a student) works in this department.  
    The tour continues with students seeing where inpatients stay, and checking out the pharmacy, administrators’ offices, assisted living, and the clinic. They finish up in the Wellness Center where the physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, and cardiac rehab are located as well as the gym that community members can use.  
    This year the tour was also coordinated with a Careflight visit that coincided with the Marshall County first responders’ safety training.  The students had the opportunity to watch the helicopter land, visit with the pilot, flight nurse and EMT.  That was a highlight for many of the students, says Tank. 
    In the past, the hands-on stations have included Glow Germ demonstrations, Heimlich maneuver, Stop the Bleed, but this year the station was led by Ashley Hagen and Cassie Kulm-Jones from physical therapy.  The students participated in a friendly competition by using BlazePods in the Wellness Center and were finally served lunch. 
    As the HIPE programs coordinator and a healthcare worker concerned about the industry’s future, Tank finds the program very valuable. She added, “We healthcare workers want to retire someday! The future of healthcare is uncertain so we work to promote healthcare careers to the students.  Some students may just think that you need to be a nurse or a doctor to be in healthcare, but we allow them to explore many other careers that some may not even know exist.”
    “We really appreciate the partnership with the school and allowing the kids to come here and experience the variety of jobs available in healthcare,” added MCHC CEO Nick Fosness. “This exposure at a young age sparks interest and what could be a very rewarding career.”
    Besides the facility tours, the HIPE folks also take healthcare to the students. They participate in career fairs, plan classroom speakers and in-classroom activities. 
    In addition to working with the fifth graders last week, HIPE members are gearing up for older students soon. The B-H and LA tenth graders will be visiting MCHC next month. 
    “It is a great opportunity to plant the seed for the fifth graders to consider a career in healthcare and then have that reinforced as tenth graders when they are getting closer to finishing high school and making plans for future careers,” noted Tank. 
     “We get such positive feedback from tour participants,” concluded Tank. “Some students who have participated in the past have been so inspired by the event that they do go into healthcare. Mission accomplished!”