More than 100 high school students, including one from Eatonville, got a hands-on look at careers in nursing at the 13th annual MultiCare Nurse Camp July 11-15. The students tried out medical devices and performed "SkittlectomiesGÇ¥ on mannequins. They toured operating rooms, emergency departments and patient rooms at MultiCare's five hospitals - Tacoma General Hospital, Mary Bridge Children's Hospital and Health Center, Good Samaritan Hospital, Allenmore Hospital and Auburn Medical Center. Eatonville High School junior Tanner Haugen attended Nurse Camp because he's interested in becoming an intensive care unit (ICU) or emergency room (ER) nurse. "The fast pace of working in an ER or a trauma center really appeals to me," he said. For his job shadow at Nurse Camp, Haugen, 16, followed a post-op nurse and learned from that experience that he doesn't want to work in anesthesia. Instead, he was looking forward to the operating room/emergency room experience at Nurse Camp, where he had the chance to observe surgical and trauma nurses in action. "I'm 98 percent sure this is what I want to do," he said. MultiCare Nurse Camp, which aims to increase diversity in healthcare, saw 105 students representing 40 western Washington cities and towns this year. It's free to the students and gives an inside look at careers in healthcare. MultiCare officials said. Students spend time in departments at MultiCare's hospitals, visit local colleges and universities and participate in hands-on rotations. In 2003, MultiCare realized the need to encourage a more diverse and well-prepared health work force and started the weeklong day camp the following year. In addition to increasing ethnic and racial diversity in health care, a growing number of young men are pursuing careers in nursing, a trend MultiCare Nurse Camp encourages and supports. In 13 years, more than 1,000 students have attended MultiCare Nurse Camp. "It is our hope by the end of the camp (each year) that the students will be inspired and motivated to pursue a career in nursing or other allied health professions,GÇ¥ said Sheri Mitchell, Nurse Camp program coordinator and community outreach liaison for the MultiCare Center for Healthy Living and Health Equity. Students this year were exposed to operating rooms, emergency rooms and the procedures, equuipment and techniques that could some day be part of their vocations.
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