Program gives campers unique look at medicine
Biennial event offers teens the opportunity to explore health care field with professionals
Abigail Barriga and Naina Akbar were trying to draw blood.
Barriga, 17, and Akbar, 14, learned the skill for the first time Tuesday in a medical simulation lab on the fifth floor of Texas Woman’s University’s Houston campus. They were two of 16 young summer campers from the The Faces of Innovation Global Teen Medical Summit learning about basic medical techniques.
The Global Teen Medical Summit is a biennial event started in 2012 by the Health Museum’s Education Team. The Houston-based program, initially developed to target giftedand-talented students with a focus on minority populations, was held once a year with a cap of about 20 students. It expanded to two sessions per year last year, and is now open to any student in the world from grades 9 to 12. A total of 35 attended this year’s summer session, which ended Friday.
“All students can benefit from this experience,” LaTanya Miles, director of Education and Public Programs at The Health Museum, said. “That exposure, active knowledge and all of these classes really contribute to career readiness for kids to see, ‘I can really go to college.’ ”
International appeal
While most of the students, such as Barriga and Akbar, are from the Houston area, a few students help the program live up to its “global” title.
One of those is Luca Aureli, a 15-year-old from Bologna, Italy. Aureli, who wants to become a pediatrician, came to Houston for a few weeks to visit his aunt. Knowing that her nephew was interested in medicine, she suggested he attend the camp.
“I’ve always felt like I know how to behave around babies, and how to make them feel happy,” Aureli said. “So I thought (pediatrics) would be a good idea for me.”
Aureli was especially attentive as he listened to the doctor’s explanations that afternoon.
“Here, I’m really interested because it shows how a baby behaves (and) what can happen to a newborn,” Aureli said.
This summer’s theme is using biomedical innovation and technology to combat hidden diseases — conditions such as Hepatitis C or HIV/AIDS that do not always show obvious external symptoms in afflicted patients.
Immersion in health care
Students spend the week getting immersive experiences through trips to the TWU’s Simulation Lab, Rice’s Biomedical Research Center, and TMC Innovations, where they interact with medical professionals to learn about their jobs and the technology they use. The learning and observation from the visits are complemented by a week-long group project to develop a 3D printing and awareness campaign that applies what students have learned into a practical context.
Medical professionals make these experiences possible through their voluntary participation.
“Some volunteer their time and participate in medical panels,” Miles said. “Others showcase medical innovations and interact one-on-one with program participants, while some allow students to shadow them for a few hours during the week to get a good understanding of their day-to-day work activities.”
At TWU, two such professionals are Dr. Rachelle Nurse, who specializes in women’s health, and Dr. Diane Montgomery, who specializes in pediatric medicine. Both are TWU nursing school faculty who normally teach at the graduate and doctorate level. Two years ago, they became involved with teaching younger students through a week-long summer program with Stafford Municipal School District that gives middle schoolers a chance to learn about nursing.
“Our goal … is really to expose students specifically to nursing, but to health care early on,” Nurse said. “And we feel that if we can do it when they’re in middle or high school, and they can see that it’s actually fun and hands-on, and they can get engaged with it … they might want to actually pursue it.”
This is their first year working with the campers from the Health Museum.
“It was great,” Nurse said. “When they first came in, they were so standoffish and quiet … and they left laughing, so we knew we accomplished what we wanted to accomplish, and they had fun with it.”
While the program may be a good educational opportunity for students interested in medicine, it comes with a hefty price tag. According to the Health Museum website, day students, who commute from their homes to the Health Museum for activities, pay $950, while overnight students, who are housed on the Rice University campus, pay $1,350 to participate.
Changing career trajectories
Limited scholarships are available through funding from the Health Museum and various grants. Five students have received a full or partial scholarship this summer.
“We make it available to as many people as we can. Through scholarships we hope to reach even more (students),” Miles said.
Barriga, Akbar, Aureli and their fellow campers tied tourniquets and painstakingly poked needles into mannequin arms. One by one, their faces lit up as they succeeded in filling their collection tubes with fake blood. Nurse laughed with satisfaction as she walked around the room.
“These kids, truly, they’re committed … to being health care providers of some sort,” Nurse said. “If more kids were exposed to something like this, it would change the trajectory they take in terms of their career.”