Taft High Healthcare students visited Kern Medical hospital on February 12, 2019. Students were able to go through all the different units of the hospital and got a behind the scenes look at what really goes on. Each level the students visited had something set up for them to do. One of which had a training mannequin laid out on a table acting as a patient. The mannequin was hooked up to computers that allow the doctors to program it to do different simulations. The students got to practice doing CPR on the dummy and the monitors showed them if they were doing it correctly.

One of the other rooms students went into was the NICU. Students we able to see premature babies that were sent to this unit. They walked around the room in awe at the sight of the tiny premature babies in their incubators. Healthcare student Karen Ortega’s favorite part was, “…looking at all the babies in the NICU.” Most students left the hospital wanting to work in the NICU unit.

Another room they went into gave them information about making healthy food choices and how it can benefit their health. There were fake plastic foods and beverages laid out on the table used to demonstrate what common foods are beneficial to our health and Karen Ortega enjoyed, “…playing with all the fake plastic and rubber foods that were on the table.” They handed out food pyramid pamphlets and let students pick something out of the ‘goodie’ box.

The psychiatric unit, blood center, and trauma center were all visited by students during their visit at the hospital. They also had a table set up with special goggles that allowed students to see what it feels like having a concussion. Students had to wear these concussion simulation goggles while trying to complete a puzzle. They also had to drive a small plastic car attached to a long stick across a map that had roads, buildings, pedestrians, and stop signs all while wearing darkened and blurred vision goggles to simulate what drunk driving at night feels like.

Kern Medical Center also provided the students with lunch. There was ham, turkey, and tofu sandwiches laid out for students. Chips, granola bars, little dessert squares, cucumber water and lemon tea were also provided for students. While students enjoyed their meals, doctors that work at Kern Medical told them their stories of how they got to where they are now and answered any questions students had.

Students were able to get the full hospital experience and had their questions answered by real doctors. They were exposed to many of the different medical career possibilities there are in a hospital. Seeing what it was actually like in the psychiatric unit of a hospital, “… It made me realize that is not a place I would want to work in,” claimed student Karen Ortega.

The CTE Healthcare program is well-known for its unique field trips and for its efficient way of exposing students to all careers involved in the medical field.