Education on health topics prepares students for life
Today’s students will encounter many health topics over the course of their lives, and Centerville High School teachers Beth Carstens and Kelly Judy want to ensure they have the knowledge they need, whether it’s for their career or their well-being.
“Our hope is that our students are educated in health topics that they might encounter throughout their lives,” said Judy. “We want them to be equipped to make the best decisions on the course of care for themselves or loved ones.”
To accomplish that, Judy and Carstens, who teach anatomy and physiology, as well as biology, host a variety of experiences for their students.
One activity revolves around a health crisis. In years past, the seminars have centered on vaping or the opioid epidemic. Another is an interactive virtual knee replacement through COSI and Mount Carmel Hospital, which gives students the chance to pose questions to doctors and medical staff in the operating room in real time.
In the spring, students learn how to conduct an autopsy by being presented a real case, then watch an interactive autopsy of the person they studied through COSI and the Ohio State Medical Center. Finally, each year the school hosts a Medical Symposium with 30-40 medical professionals ranging from the business side of health care to surgery.
“Students may not know the different pathways, demands and opportunities that are needed for different medical careers,” Carstens said. “By providing these experiences, they can see the vast array of areas in which they can get involved in medicine. The ability to critically analyze and reflect on their strengths to push themselves to be the best that they can be in their future is what we try to design our experiences around.”
Both teachers said they try to make all interactions as applicable as possible to cover health-related scenarios students could face in the future, such as a cancer diagnosis, pregnancy, blood donations, broken bones, injuries, organ transplants and more.
“Our hope is students are able to understand goals and dreams are attainable in anything that they do,” Judy said. “The journey to get there isn’t always the most expected way, but they need to be resilient, push forward and be lifelong learners.”