High school students interested in an in-depth, honors-level program that immerses them in careers in medicine are encouraged to attend a Jan. 23 open house.
The New Visions: Health Careers program open house will begin at
9 a.m. at the Capital Region BOCES Career and Technical Education Center – Albany Campus, located at 925B Watervliet-Shaker Road in Albany. Doors open at 8:30 a.m.
New Visions: Health Careers is a one-year, honors-level program that turns area hospitals into classrooms for highly motivated, academically successful high school seniors. In the program, students from across the region learn through traditional methods (lecture, reading, research, writing and focused study), group discussions, internships and rotations.
Students also take part in approximately 30 rotations in hospital departments ranging from surgery to outpatient care and even facility operations. In the past, students have witnessed and taken part in cesarean sections, hysterectomies, care for stroke patients, emergency room operations and more.
“I have had rotations in wound care, physical therapy, occupational therapy, watched a C-section and observed speech therapy. The program is very positive, very upbeat and different every day,” said Class of 2025 graduate Amber Chase.
Fellow graduate McKenna Slingerland, an aspiring oncologist, also learned and enjoyed her rotations.
“I got to observe two open heart surgeries that had major complications. One female patient coded during bypass, but they got her back, and the male had a porcelain aorta (PA) [a rare but serious condition where the ascending aorta becomes heavily calcified]. They both survived and I learned so much,” Slingerland said.
New Visions: Health Careers classrooms are located at Bellevue Woman’s Center in Niskayuna and at St. Peter’s Hospital in Albany. Classes meet daily in the morning and students are transported to the program by their home school districts.
Guilderland High School Class of 2024 graduate Andrew Altschule chose New Visions to prepare for a career as an anesthesiologist.
“I want to help people handle their pain. New Visions is positioning me in the direction I want to go, and it is giving me much more experience than you would get just sitting in a classroom,” he said.
Visit the New Visions: Health Careers – Capital Region BOCES page for information on the program.