While most students headed to class on April 17, 39 sophomores took a field trip to the High School Healthcare Career Fair at Mercy South instead. Although the program has changed its name and location over the past few years, it still serves the same purpose: educating aspiring healthcare professionals. For the first time since COVID-19, West High attended the event at Mercy South. 

College and career counselor Chris Lorenz manages the programming schedule for school-sponsored activities, and wanted to create an opportunity for students to explore the healthcare field before their junior and senior years of high school. 

“The sophomore grade level doesn’t have much to sign up for and do, [but] my feeling was [that], by the spring of sophomore year, students would have an inclination [for] health sciences and sign up for it to get the [early] exposure,” Lorenz said. 

While planning the trip, Lorenz wanted to make sure that scheduling wasn’t a barrier when students were deciding if they could attend. As a result, the trip lasted under three hours, departing at 7:30 a.m and returning to school around 11 a.m. 

“We have a lot of high-flying students in this building, and missing class is tough, which is why I try to schedule [events during academic] lab time so they only miss one class. The ability to go and find [an opportunity] on their own is near impossible, so exposure like this [could have] a significant impact on future thinking on what they want to do,” Lorenz said.

While a large group from West High attended, many other nearby schools also expressed interest in the field trip. At the hospital, students rotated between four different sessions, each with different faculty members from the hospital. Some sessions consisted of presentations from healthcare professionals, while others were “mock scenarios” with patients. In the past, when students attended, they practiced pushing wheelchairs, explored the health career displays and practiced surgery with a robot. 

“I think this field trip was a great experience and a great way to learn new things about what my career could possibly be. Also, I [got to] meet people my age [who] had the same interests as me,” sophomore Harper Schultz said. 

These sessions were followed by a meeting with college representatives, where students could receive more information about health-science programs. Many of the students expressed interest in pursuing a healthcare career, so this event’s goal was to give them a chance to gain insight into future opportunities. 

“Healthcare is something I’ve always been drawn to, so this field trip is less about trying something new and more about getting a closer look at a field I’ve genuinely always seen myself going into,” sophomore Virinchi Vennapusa said. 

In the next few years, Lorenz plans to make this field trip available to students once again. Additionally, students may pursue a healthcare-related internship, shadowing or pre-college programs to prepare for their future careers.

“My hope is that kids will come away from this feeling like it was worth their time, [realize a] need to strengthen [their] resolve to go into the health sciences, or [realize] that this isn’t quite what they thought it was going to be,” Lorenz said.