Are you unsure whether Healthcare Academy is the right fit for you?
AHS has many academy classes that vary from different healthcare jobs. Where you’d get assigned to a school that has the class you want, and from there you keep going.
Healthcare academy was created to help teach students the different jobs in the healthcare field. But it also helps give background to the many students who take it. If students are unsure whether or not they want to pursue healthcare, this is a good way for them to gain experience in a more realistic setting.
Academy classes in the healthcare field differ from regular classes:
“We do hands-on work and labs, so it feels very serious and we’re learning something for the future and we could use the skills in a real job,” senior Yle Salgado said.
One of the courses offered is Exploring Health Sciences/Exploring the Language of Medicine.
This course teaches the evolution of healthcare, current trends, and how the structure of different healthcare systems vary (public, private, non-profit).
Students identify key personal qualities and traits of effective health professionals. The course dives into the details of career exploration and development along with their necessary requirements. Students also study the standards of legal, ethical, and safety regulations while being introduced to basic clinical skills.
“We do a lot of textbook work, a lot of medical textbooks. Our class is actually really small, we’ve got maybe 15 people,” sophomore Sophie Yamaoka said. “I am certain that I’m going to do this as a career. I could do this for the rest of my life, it’s really interesting,” she added.
Another academy course offered is Emergency Medical Technician 1 & 2. This is a two year course created for juniors and seniors to prepare for a career in emergency medical services. The curriculum combines lectures, laboratory skills, and supervised clinical experiences with patients, using auditory and hands-on learning.
Another course offered is Medical Assistant Level 1 & 2. It provides a comprehensive, hands-on learning experience in clinical and administrative medical assisting and is designed to lead students to employment and industry certification.
If you take the Medical assistant course, you’ll be able to work outside of the classroom and work on other children.
“We had to go to an elementary school and we had to give them a hearing test and an eye exam,” Salgado said.
With this course being more hands-on, it gives the student an overview of what it’s like to work hands on and be a medical assistant.
Going into an Academy course is different then going to a regular class, where they broadly touch on the subject of health.
“We have clinicals where you have to be really responsible, if you go out to do testing. I think it’s really different because you get more hands-on experience with real life situations than just normal classes,” junior Zukhurf Ali said.
In Level 1, students study the basics of anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, medical terminology, asepsis, mathematics, legal/ethical responsibilities, and develop techniques for clinical practice.
In Level 2, students apply their skills from year one, focusing on advanced on-the-job procedures in a healthcare facility.
“I feel like it’s confirmed that I really want to go into nursing because I got a feel of what I would learn and what I would do because we do go to clinicals in the Iatric facilities and I feel like it’s really confirmed that I really want to do nursing,” Junior Alina Raimondo said. “I feel like it’s a really great opportunity and if you think that you really want to go into nursing, I feel like you should really take it because you really get a feel of what you may do in the future.”
Patient Care Technician is another healthcare course offered. This is a hands-on program, designed to ready students for roles within the healthcare system. Focusing mainly on nursing and foundational medical knowledge occupations.
The course’s initiative is to integrate academic instruction with practical skill development and training in basic medical procedures and skills necessary for direct patient care. Because of the program’s partnerships, high-quality work-based learning is offered to align with the students career goal.
Similar to this course is another called Patient Care Technician/Nurse Aid which prepares students for entry-level nursing occupations.
Offering a joint program of comprehensive training combining class room instruction, practical skills, and work- based learning. Both care technician and nurse aide courses cover growth and development, basic structures and functions, and medical terminology. Though nurse aides’ main focus is more need-to-know basic practices. While patient care technicians direct it to extend to more advanced concepts and procedures.
The last class the Academy program offers is Practical Nursing. The curriculum for this course is designed to prepare students for the National Council Licensure Examination for Practical Nurses exam in order to become a Licensed Practical Nurse.
The class discusses ten topics, from anatomy to pharmacology to nursing skills and geriatrics. Available for juniors and seniors, juniors dive into anatomy & physiology, medical terminology, nutrition, fundamentals/skills lab, growth, development & geriatrics; whereas seniors study medical-surgical nursing, maternal-child/pediatrics, mental health, pharmacology/math, leadership.
A course different from the rest are the Pharmacy Technician Level 1 & 2 programs which trains students on the essential skills required for entry-level pharmacy work.
Level 1’s primary focus is foundational knowledge and skills necessary to begin working as a pharmacy technician while also preparing for level 2. Level 2’s priority is to advance students on their clinical skills, and experience with pharmaceutical dispensers, all the while preparing for the Exam for the Certification of Pharmacy Technicians and Virginia Board of Pharmacy Requirements which are necessary to become a pharmacist.
Both levels cover operations and safety within a pharmacy including pharmacy law, HIPPA, OSHA records, medication safety, and inventory control.
To stimulate learning in these academy courses, competitions are held.
Junior Zukhurf Ali who takes the Medical assisting course participated in the CPR and first aid and medical languages competition held at Inova: “ I was able to meet more of my classmates and I learned how to intubate someone even though we don’t learn it in a medical system one, but I learned it from the EMT students how to intubate. I learned a lot of cool things like how to look for my veins, and what new technologies that are being formed to help people in need of medical attention,” Ali said.
All these specialized courses help students get a kick start in the long education journey to become a medical professional. However, one does not have to take Academy healthcare courses in order to be successful in the field.
