MSU program nurtures the seeds of medicine

by MSU-Bozeman News Service

Aug. 13, 2001           

              Bozeman -- Sometimes it's the kindness and compassion of a physician during a family crisis or maybe it's just putting a bandage on your sister's knee, but life's events can plant the seed that leads to a career in medicine. The U-DOC High School Summer Program on the Montana State University-Bozeman campus helps to nurture that seed.

            Twelve students from throughout Montana participated in the six-week U-DOC program. In its fourth year, the program is designed for students interested in medicine and other health careers. Its participants are mostly rural students who might not otherwise have the chance to see the breadth and scope of opportunities in medicine. The students were selected from 71 applications from students in 46 Montana communities.

            "When my grandmother was sick, the doctors were so wonderful to her and our family that I wanted to be able to do that for other people," said Stacie Gouldsberry a senior from Fort Benton.

            "I'm the oldest in a family of four kids. I'd often watch the little kids and put a bandage on their knees when they got hurt," recalls Tyson Kolar, a graduate of Hobson High School. "It made me want to be a family doctor."

            All U-DOC participants received full scholarships and took part in a program that included academics and job-shadowing opportunities. The students took a math/science class, an anatomy class, and communications classes that involve writing, speaking and analysis skills, as well as a look at ethics and issues in medicine.

            "This program was a lot of fun for me as an instructor because the kids were so enthusiastic," said MSU anatomy professor Dwight Phillips.

             The students also took Red Cross First Aid and CPR Pro classes. They took tours of health facilities including Bozeman Deaconess Hospital, American Medical Response and Three Rivers Clinic.

            "The students enjoy the class atmosphere, the friendships with peers and mentors and the varied schedule of our program," said Clara Pincus, program director.  "It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience."   

            The cat dissections in the anatomy class were hands down the favorite experience for the students.

            "I'm from a small town and you just don't get this range of experience in our classrooms," said Jenny Sutton, a senior from Lincoln.

            More than 50 health care professionals, including 18 doctors, at 22 Bozeman clinics and organizations participated in the program as clinical hosts. The students shadowed an average of six times over five weeks. For many of the students, it was the job shadowing that cinched their interest in medicine or got them thinking about a totally different aspect of medicine.

            "When I came to the program I was thinking about a career in pathology. But after shadowing with an anesthesiologist, I'm thinking more in that direction. It really clicked for me that as an anesthesiologist you're the one breathing for that person," said Brooke Hjelm, a graduate of Culbertson High School.

            Phillips emphasizes that one of the most important things that the program does is show students how people become physicians.

            "Many don't understand the process, and we focus their interests," he said.

            "I really liked that they showed me the challenges in becoming a doctor," said Hjelm.  "It just makes me more determined."

            Sara Schlemmer, a senior from Fromberg, wants to give back to the community that supported her. Several students echoed her sentiments, they too are planning to return to the towns they grew up in to practice medicine.  

Send questions or comments to Carol Schmidt: cschmidt@montana.edu. Or you can send letters to Carol Schmidt, MSU Communications Services, 416 Culbertson Hall, Bozeman, MT 59717.

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