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MERCY REGIONAL HEALTH CENTER, Manhattan, KS
Middle School Expo/Kindergarten Hospital
What is it?
News coverage has made Americans well aware of the national nursing shortage. But what many people don't realize is that as the Baby Boomers age and require more medical attention, shortages are likely in all medical fields, including lab technicians, radiologists, and finance professionals to name a few. Since 2003, Mercy Regional Health Center has hosted a Middle School Health Career Expo to expose students to potential medical careers. The program targets middle school students from an eight county region. This age group was selected mainly because these students are often beginning to think about their future careers. As part of the event, students participate in hands-on activities at different booths representing the wide range of careers within the hospital. This experience allows students the opportunity to interact with a variety of medical professionals and pose questions to them directly. Students leave the Expo with information about healthcare career options, including a description of various positions along with the corresponding educational requirements, annual salary ranges and job availability. The event has grown considerably with approximately 300 students who currently attend the annual event.
Mercy Regional also hosts Kindergarten Hospital, a similar program targeting Kindergarten students in Manhattan. It too, is designed as a hands-on learning initiative to expose them to careers in health care. However, its primary function is to help alleviate any fears Kindergartners may have about visiting a hospital. This event draws over 400 students annually.
Who is it for?
The Middle School Expo is open to (seventh and eighth grade) students from an eight county area of Manhattan including: Riley, Pottawatomie, Geary, Morris, Washington, Clay, Marshall and Wabaunsee.
The Kindergarten Hospital is for all Kindergarten students (public and private) in Manhattan.
Who is it for?
These programs were created to encourage interest among today's youth in healthcare careers of tomorrow. It has been said, that a child was never too young to begin planting a seed to get him/her interested in playing sports or developing an interest in the arts by taking the child to experience the event first hand. Once the child is hooked he/she begins developing his/her own skills and takes the initiative to learn on his/her own to be the best at the chosen sport or art.
Why do they do it?
With such shortages in healthcare professions, we needed to generate that same type of interest, compassion and enthusiasm for careers in healthcare. The more exposure kids have the better chance those seeds will grow. With so many careers represented within a single organization, Mercy Regional Health Center, hosting a career expo at the hospital seemed to be a natural fit. Accommodating many children at one location would facilitate school participation and allow Mercy Regional to provide to almost every child within the targeted age group a learning experience about an array of healthcare careers and keeping oneself healthy, and at the same time helping to alleviate fears related to unknown events that are perceived to take place behind closed doors.
Contact: Judy Wagner
Vice President Mission Services
785-323-6707
Judy_Wagner@mercyregional.org