Davis High School students gain hands-on experience with state-of-the-art medical technology

Some Davis High School students are gaining hands-on experience with cutting-edge medical technology.

It’s part of a program to inspire more young people to become nurses and doctors.

And it comes at a time when the country desperately needs more healthcare professionals.

“The need for doctors is simply huge,” said high school student Neha Dinesh Kumar.

“I know it is very important for us to have more nurses and doctors,” added senior Sarina Millar.

A US hospital study shows that there will be a shortage of around 100,000 critical healthcare professionals by 2028.

“We have an aging population, there are many more people who need surgical care,” said Dr. Tyler Robinson, a surgeon at Mercy Hospital.

That’s why Robinson invites high school students to his place of work – an operating room at Mercy General Hospital in Sacramento.

“I just hope this inspires them and some of them think about a career in health care,” Robinson said.

As a student, he shadowed a surgeon at the same hospital 16 years ago.

He now performs minimally invasive surgeries with a robot – many patients can go home the same day.

Students like Neha, Jasmin and Sarah said they are learning a lot.

“Seeing it in real life is a completely different experience,” Neha said.

“I learn a lot more science things here than in my actual science class,” Sarina added.

But first come years of study, internships and stays. This type of hands-on experience shows them how high-tech modern medicine can be.

However, for now they are only allowed to operate on a banana instead of a real patient.

“It solidified my desire to study medicine,” Sarina said.

“When I come here, I realize how big an impact I can have on other people’s lives,” Neha said.

The program is part of an internship course at Davis High School that also allows students to observe other areas of the hospital such as oncology and the emergency room.