High school students considering a career in health care got a glimpse of their options at a conference in Muenster last week. St. Peter's College hosted the third annual Rural Health Link conference, which was attended by 103 Grade 11 and 12 students from around the Horizon School Division."It's an extremely good turnout," said Alysha Garrett of the Saskatoon Health Region, one of the conference organizers. Attendance was higher this year than it has been at either of the two previous events. The conference, which lasted an entire school day, is meant to provide a snapshot into health care and the career opportunities within it, Garrett noted. The SHR holds a similar health career day in Saskatoon for urban students, but the one held out at St. Peter's College has a more rural focus to it. "We have rural staff highlighting rural opportunities," Garrett stated.Traditional and more modern careers were explored at this conference.There were nursing and physician professionals on hand to talk about their careers, which many are familiar with. But there were also professionals in home care, long term care, acute care, occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech language pathology, recreation therapy, lab and X-ray technology, ultrasound technology, addictions counselling, psychiatry, therapy, radiation, and nuclear therapy there to tell students what their jobs are all about. The students heard from a panel of professionals which included an exercise therapist, nurse, clinical dietician, pharmacist, physician and pharmacy tech.They also had their choice of attending sessions on nursing or therapies in the morning, and medical diagnostics or mental health and additions in the afternoon. "There's lots of hands-on activities," Garrett said of the sessions. "It's really interactive."The purpose of these break-out sessions was to explain the role of each health care provider. Students were given a chance to see what their daily activities would be if they chose a certain profession."We are ultimately giving them a chance to make an educated decision on opportunities... (That) is our ultimate goal," said Garrett.In Saskatoon, they have a total of 320 students apply to attend the Health Link conference, and they only accept 160. "We want to keep the groups small, because it's interactive," Garrett noted. "That's what's cool about it."The way the conference is set up engages youth, Garrett believes, and allows them a rare opportunity to ask professionals their questions. "I tell them, we have (all these) professionals under one roof at one time. Take advantage. Ask as many questions as you can," she said. That this is a valuable conference has been confirmed by the fact that the professional presenters want to come back every year. "They have deemed it a priority," she said. By attending this one conference, they can reach the students keen on getting into health care without visiting a dozen schools, doing different presentations in each one, she explained. Holding this rural event is a result of a true partnership between the SHR, St. Peter's College and Horizon School Division."It's a very good partnership. A win-win for everyone," Garrett said.
