ATLANTA — A summer intern program is hoping to shape the next generation of healthcare professionals, by giving them an inside peak of hospital operations this summer.
“I saw a woman who had been shot in the shoulder,” said Jonathan Daniel about a moment he won’t forget as he was shadowing in Grady’s Emergency Department.
“Seeing that person knowing that they were going to be better off because they were there, that was something that inspired me,” said Daniel who is a rising senior in high school.
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Daniel is one of more than 200 students taking part in the Teen Experience and Leadership Program at Grady, better known as TELP. Dozens of 14 through 19-year-old students are spending their summer in the hospital shadowing.
“Really one of the purposes for it is workforce development. You can’t be what you can’t see,” said Grady Chief Health Equity Officer Dr. Yolanda Wimberly.
From neurology, to trauma, to cancer care and more, the hope is to inspire the next generation of healthcare providers. It is needed. After the pandemic, health care workers are leaving the industry at high rates. And by recruiting future doctors from many different backgrounds and races, the goal is to also improve patient care.
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“It means that you may get more culturally competent care. People who have a lived experience that is similar to yours research has shown has better outcomes,” said Dr. Wimberly.
Princess Barge is a student on her way to college this fall. “My family has had a very long history of cancer and I kind of grew in the hospital,” said Barge who wanted to be a doctor. TELP has helped her zero in on exactly where her future in the hospital stands.
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“Trauma really seemed to catch my eye, just the variety of injuries and patients and experiences you get to see,” said Barge.
And the program is working. After a summer of hospital rotations through the program, and with a full ride to Rice University this fall, Princess says she’ll be back.
“I would love to do my fellowship and residency here.”
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