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Instead of walking the busy halls of their school, 10 Madison Park Vocational Technical High School students got a chance to see the inner workings of the Brigham on Feb. 1 as part of the 18th annual Job Shadow Day at BWH.
The day-long event is an initiative of the Boston Private Industry Council, which connects youth and adults in Boston to education and employment opportunities. Each year, various employers and organizations, including BWH, host students for the day, matching them one-on-one with employees.
"It's a great experience for students to be in a professional environment, working alongside BWH employees in a variety of departments and settings," said Carlen Singmaster, special events coordinator in Human Resources.
Singmaster works directly with the council to implement the day at BWH, which is designed to give students the opportunity to learn about patient care across various hospital departments and locations. From making rounds with care teams to pitching in with clerical work, students become more familiar with working in a health care setting.
Madison Park sophomore Marlene DeJesus spent her time at BWH shadowing Ana Hoffman, one of the hospital's Spanish language interpreters. DeJesus said her experience visiting patients for the day with Hoffman helped her discover that she wants to work in a medical setting.
Sophomore Christopher Vaquerano, who is also interested in health care, shadowed Materials Management Supervisor George White. "Participating in Job Shadow Day gave me the chance to learn one-on-one from a hospital professional," Vaquerano said.
White says that Job Shadow Day is not just meaningful to the students who participate, but to BWH as well. "Health care is such an important service, which is what I want to share with young people who are just starting to think about what they will be doing in the future," he said. "I enjoy my job each day because I know I'm contributing to other people's lives, and that is what working in health care is all about."