"The experiences at the

hospital have helped me realize the true meaning of teamwork and the hard

work of healthcare providers," she added.

Not only is the job shadowing

program helping students learn about the different careers in healthcare

whether a health occupations career is the right choice for them. Some

students admit that by participating in the program they have ruled out

careers that they probably would have pursued otherwise.

"I like going to the hospital.

There are some areas that I don't like and this experience has helped

me to see that. I'm not sure about my career yet, but I'm thinking of

something that has to do with the hospital," said junior Shelby Marr.

The students are not the only

ones benefiting from the school's partnership with the hospital, so are

the hospital's staff. Cathy Churbock, RN, MSN, CCRN, staff educator at

Fayette Community Hospital and coordinator of the job-shadowing program,

says that the staff finds it exciting to see the fresh, young perspective

of the students.

"Their enthusiasm and

innocence really makes the staff feel important because the students are

just in awe with seeing what all they do to take care of our patients,"

explained Churbock.

Another plus for the hospital

is that it is identifying potential future healthcare workers. According

to Churbock, a nursing shortage is already effecting the healthcare industry

and recruiting people into the field is essential.

"We need healthcare workers

and we need to recruit our youth into these positions. We are a community

hospital and we want to be able to pull from the community for our staffing

needs," said Churbock.

Due to its success, both Phillips

and Churbock say they plan to continue the job-shadowing program next

year. Phillips says it has been a valuable component to the health occupations

curriculum.

"The biggest benefit is

that it puts students into real life situations. We can talk about various

jobs and situations in class but what we learn has more impact if we can

literally experience it," Phillips added.