Photo: Shari Small/WBZ NewsRadio
ESSEX, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — A group of aspiring nurses is getting hands-on experience at Essex Tech High School.
The medical assistant program brings students from other high schools to Essex Tech, where they get to use state-of-the-art teaching tools. They have a sophisticated medical teaching manikin and a virtual surgery and cadaver table.
Instructor Richard Frank said the program helps future nurses learn despite not being old enough to do operations. All of the students are currently juniors in high school.
“It's a professional program, it’s a workforce-type program,” said Frank. “They’re here to learn how to become a professional within the profession.”
Students in the program can take a test to become a Certified Nursing Assistant as early as January.
“We had our first cohort last year and we had a 100 percent pass rate and every single one of them are now out working in their field,” said Frank.
“Since we can’t obviously do it on real humans, this is just like a visual of what we’re going to be doing in the future,” said one of the students. “It’s just helping us learn more and in a fun way.”
WBZ NewsRadio's Shari Small (@ShariSmallNews) reports:
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