They will provide care for victims of a simulated disaster, help deliver a (robotic) baby, read x-rays, and practice doing splints and casts. Young medical hopefuls across Southwestern Ontario are getting a taste this month of what it's like to be a doctor with MedQUEST, a summer camp designed to encourage more students from the region to apply to medical school.
MedQUEST was developed by the Southwestern Ontario Medical Education Network (SWOMEN) at Western's Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, as a strategy to address the severe shortage of physicians in this region.
The week-long camps are being held in Seaforth, Walkerton, Sarnia, Leamington and Chatham with medical students from Schulich Medicine acting as counsellors. 144 high school students from grades 10 and 11 are registered.
MedQUEST has been recognized as an effective way to encourage students to plan a career in the health profession. In June, MedQUEST won a Prix D'Excellence Gold Medal from the Canadian Council for the Advancement of Education for "Best Community Outreach Program". MedQUEST was also one of the core projects that led to HealthKick Huron, which oversees the Seaforth camp, being recognized by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care as "Ontario's Best Innovation of the Year" in the category "Innovations in Health Human Resources".
MedQUEST Coordinator, Kathy Van Dinther can be reached at 519-661-2111 ext. 22147 or toll free: 1-877-237-9676, Kathy.vandinther@schulich.uwo.ca
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