Teach Me… Show Me How: Mentorship

Early in my tenure as a new center director for Southeast Alabama AHEC, (SEAAHEC) I traveled across the 15-county service area to meet board members – one of whom was Judi Miller, MSN, the founding director for the Baptist Health Institute for Patient Safety, Medical Simulation, and Clinical Education. The Institute was created “to improve the quality of healthcare while reducing the likelihood of medical errors” (https://www.baptistfirst.org).

Since the early days of SEAAHEC, the Institute provides space, several times a year, for board meetings and SEAAHEC core programs. One of our newest programs - AHEC Scholars - is a multi-discipline activity for post-secondary health professions students interested in career readiness by learning and training in an interprofessional setting.

The clinical training at the Institute offers high-fidelity human patient simulation using state-of-the- art mannequins who mimic symptoms of child birth, heart attacks, and other medical crises. Students perform bedside care under the tutelage of educators who control the actions and audible sounds of the mannequins while observing students through a glass window in an adjoining room.

The students learn by doing. The students also learn by watching educators who exhibit best practices in keeping with the purpose to do no harm while providing quality patient care - one example

of the mentoring opportunities offered for SEAAHEC students.

This summer one of our enrichment and mentoring programs, Discovery MedCamp was highlighted on social media by regional media teams and the National AHEC Association which featured a group photo and a story from the Wetumpka Herald on Facebook.

The links below, provided by Assistant Director Paula Cheatwood, highlight the recent coverage and provide a glimpse of how SEAAHEC implements mentoring to boost workforce development in health care for Southeast Alabama.

https://www.facebook.com/97439545825/posts/10156090847375826?s=100008465537302&sfns=mo

https://www.alabamanews.net/2019/06/18/teenagers-learn-about-health-care-at-elmore-community-hospital/

http://www.aum.edu/aum-faculty-help-high-school-students-explore-health-care-careers

https://www.thewetumpkaherald.com/multimedia/photos-high-schoolers-get-hands-on-medical-experience/collection_48770edc-9395-11e9-934b-63e8ac501696.html