By Susan Woodward Contributing writer Julianne Golding, 17, learned something new about herself last month. And it is that she really likes newborns. A student at MultiCare Health System's 11th annual Nurse Camp July 21-25, Golding spent time shadowing nurses who work with mothers and newborn babies and found it really moved her. "They got to assess babies and give them baths and stuff like that,GÇ¥ she between stations that had been set up for students at MultiCare Tacoma General Hospital. "It was so cool and so cute. Just being able to help people and being able to make a difference in the world, that's inspiring. "We got to sew up pigs' feet, and that was really cool, but the job shadow with the newborns has been my favorite part.GÇ¥ Golding, who attends Eatonville High School, is one of 107 South Sound high school students to earn a spot in the highly competitive summer camp after a rigorous application process. She said she was inspired to apply by her mother, an oncology nurse, and her brother, who was born without one of his heart chambers. "I'm thinking more about becoming a nurse since I came here. At first it was up in the air, and now I'm thinking, oh, this might be what I actually want to do,GÇ¥ Golding said. Nurse Camp provides a hands-on look at careers in nursing and allied health professions. During the five-day event, students are trying out medical devices, performing "SkittlectomiesGÇ¥ on mannequins and suturing pig legs. In addition, they are participating in professional job shadow opportunities in emergency, critical care, labor and delivery, physical therapy and other units and departments. "You're the future of how we deliver healthcare here in our region of the United States,GÇ¥ MultiCare president Bill Robertson told the students when they gathered for their first day of Nurse Camp. "I look out and say, "Wow, we are in good hands'.GÇ¥ Cara Koch, nurse program coordinator in the MultiCare Center for Healthy Living, said that by the end of the camp, "we hope to have inspired these students to become MultiCare nurses or allied health professionals within the next five to seven years.GÇ¥ MultiCare began its first Nurse Camp in 2003, graduating 30 students. The camp has grown in popularity every year since, with an increasing number of young men considering nursing careers, too. Nurse Camp is occurring at all five MultiCare hospitals ' Tacoma General Hospital, Mary Bridge Children's Hospital and Medical Center, Good Samaritan Hospital, Allenmore Hospital and, for the first year, Auburn Medical Center. Students shared their experiences on social media throughout the week with the hashtag #nursecamprocks.
Susan Woodward is the senior media relations coordinator for MultiCare Health System.
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