Students learn medical careers

Clark Fork Valley Hospital is the biggest employer in Sanders County and it's not just in the medical field, but they too need to fill positions and are looking to Plains High School to help.

The hospital last week formed a partnership with the school and held an all-day field trip for recruiting purposes with a group of juniors with hopes that some will seek employment with the hospital after their 2025 graduation. The hospital's chief operating officer, Jeanie Gentry, wanted to let the future graduates know that there are jobs at the hospital that might be of interest to them. Twenty-one junior class students spent last Wednesday at the hospital getting an employment tour of the various specialties there for the school's new "Pathways to Healthcare Careers" program.

"This is an excellent opportunity for our students as it allows them to get a close up look at the many career opportunities available to them in the healthcare industry, as well as available to them within our community," said Dr. Kathleen Walsh, the school superintendent, who worked with Gentry and Tyrel Allen, the high school guidance counselor, to coordinate the event.

The Plains High School students broke into small groups to tour six different stations at the hospital, including medical, business and support specialties. "We have a great opportunity to help persuade our Plains High School students to pick a career in healthcare," said Gentry. The students spent nearly six hours touring the medical facility and getting information about the various jobs there.

"There are a lot of ways to be involved in healthcare where you're not necessarily doing direct patient care and they're just as important to the work they do," said Dr, Greg Hanson, the hospital's CEO and president, who welcomed the students to the hospital that morning.

"Our folks that work in housekeeping are critical for infectious disease prevention, our maintenance guys are absolutely necessary, our facility services guys so that we can keep the lights on every day, heat and power, and our team here really looks upon the non-clinic areas as team members," added Hanson, who started at Clark Fork Valley Hospital as one of the medical providers over 30 years ago. At one point, he was called upon as a temporary CEO, which he believed would only be for about six weeks, but instead it turned into a permanent position, which he has held for almost 17 years.

Hanson said that all medical fields are lacking people, especially in rural areas. "The country is short something like 150,000 doctors. Primary care is hurting in a big way. There is a terrible shortage in nursing and I don't think that's going to change anytime soon," Hanson said. Carla Neiman, the hospital's chief financial officer, said the largest expense for the hospital is salaries for its 250 employees, which includes a large number of staff members that are not directly working in the medical field.

Gentry told the group of students that in the healthcare business, wages are generally a little better than other areas for the same work. Laurie Endres of the rehabilitation services said the starting pay for someone in the physical therapy profession is around $80,000 a year. She added that Clark Fork Valley Hospital also offers a signup bonus. Last year, the hospital hired 2006 Plains High School graduate Barb Steward as its newest doctor.

The students met with numerous staff members throughout the day, including Tina Dockter and Darlene Malmend in the business office, Jason Williams from plant engineering, and Miriah Corbin from materials and supplies. Mark Solinger and Sara Nestor gave them a tour of the imaging department. Carol Dykstra from food services talked with them, as did Dawn Henry of environmental professional services, as well as Arlene Lindsay in long term care.

Some of the departments had hands-on activities or handouts for the kids. Endres gave each student a piece of Theraputty, which she uses for patients for hand and finger strengthening. In the surgery department, Gretchen French, the lead surgical technician and a Plains graduate, had the students use a laparoscopic cholecystectomy to retrieve gummy worms from the inside of a simulated human body. She was accompanied by Registered Nurse Rashell Jones. The hospital's chief nursing officer, Lisa Eberhardt, went over some of the surgical tools doctors use.

A group of nurses in acute care - Abigail Collett, Cassie Craft, Danika Grossberg, and Bailie Thompson - provided an exercise that actually saved the life of "Annie Suss' by putting them through a Blue Code simulation. "The good thing about working at a rural hospital is we get to work everywhere," said Grossberg, the acute care nursing manager. Collett added that being at a small hospital, at the end of the day she feels like she makes a difference.

Matt Bishop, the imaging manager, loaded students into the cat scan machine while Rachel Fairbank had the students work the ultrasound device. "The reason you're here today is we want you to come back and work for us," said Bishop. And Robbi Gascon, a Thompson Falls graduate and the cardiopulmonary service manager, had the juniors operate a Glidescope in an effort to unblock an airway in "Fred," the department's medical mannequin. Gascon said that Jasmine Trull did the procedure the quickest at about 45 seconds.

Gentry felt the partnership event between the hospital and the school was a complete success as evidenced by the feedback the students gave at the end of the day. She hopes to do it again next year and include other schools throughout the county. A handful of Noxon High School students a week prior spent time at the hospital and at MT West Dentist for a similar field day. Walsh was pleased with the event and wants to continue it next year. Gentry said last week that all of the students mentioned enjoying the field day at the hospital and the learning of new information.

"Several students indicated an interest in future job shadowing and even in part-time jobs," said Gentry. On a 1-10 scale, Gentry said the students rated the experience an 8.5 and they recommended that the hospital offer the event to others, but allow more time at the stations.

"Obtaining first hand knowledge of the many and varied career paths allows them to gain insight which will help them to make informed decisions on which path in life they may wish to pursue," said Walsh. "The partnership with Clark Fork Valley Hospital and our school adds a richness to the experiences we can provide for our students and helps build community connections, which both the hospital and school communities may benefit from," she said.

"I would say that the day was a huge success. The kids were able to have some great hands-on experiences in the various departments and learn about great options, not only in healthcare, but also specifically for our local hospital," said Allen, who felt the majority of the students thought it was well worth going, even if they were not thinking about healthcare as a profession. "It gave the students something to think about as they work toward their post-secondary aspirations," said Allen.

Gentry was pleased with the partnership between the hospital and the school. "We shared ideas and goals as a team, and that's how we came up with this unique type of experience for the students," said Gentry, who appreciated the school superintendent for her vision for community engagement.