Sixty high school students (Grade 10-12) from across the province participated in hands-on activities in the Dental Simulation (SIM) lab as part of the Health Sciences Career Camp on August 13, 2013.
The Health Sciences Career Camp is supported by CAREERS: The Next Generation, a non-profit organization helping students earn while they learn through internship. CAREERS has partnered up with Alberta Health Services, Covenant Health, MacEwan University, NAIT, NorQuest College and the University of Alberta to offer an interactive, educational and unique summer camp opportunity for students interested in a career in the healthcare sector.
Dental hygiene faculty members Arlynn Brodie, Assistant Clinical Professor, and Sally Lockwood, Associate Clinical Professor, were leading the students in activities such as making thumb molds and working with the simulation manikins. Followed by brief, but thorough instructions, the students were able to pretend they were working on a real person by using Dentoforms inserted into the manikin heads and using instruments like suction and air. Staff member, Ronan Chay, was also on hand to help prepare the stations and help with clean up.
When students were asked what they liked about their experience in the SIM lab many of them said that it was 'cool' and that the hands on activities were a nice break to the usual presentations.
Will dentistry or dental hygiene be a career they choose? Nobody knows just yet, but at least they were provided an opportunity to be exposed to the profession even if just for a couple of hours, which is exactly what the CAREERS program is meant to do.
Students think SIM Lab is cool
15 August 2013