Back to Annual Meeting

Back to Annual Meeting

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Candace Burns, MS, Galia Wise, and Daniel Correia, MPA. Community Benefit Program, Massachusetts General Hospital, 101 Merrimac St Suite 603, Boston, MA 02114, 617-724-2950, caburns@partners.org

Description: The innovative career development initiative between Massachusetts General Hospital, East Boston High School and Boston Private Industry Council (PIC), known as ProTech, encourages underserved and underrepresented students to pursue healthcare careers with particular emphasis on areas experiencing workforce shortages, including nursing. Activities: Through collaborative activities with the school, hospital and PIC and by integrating classroom and work-based learning, students from East Boston High are being prepared for challenging and rewarding careers in healthcare. Method: Students participate in a hospital orientation and depending on the department in which he/she is placed, they receive on the job and competency based training. Students also participate in professional development forums throughout their 20 month placement. Findings to date: 100% of ProTech students are accepted to college, 60% of students are in nursing school or declaring nursing majors, most students have received college scholarships, and approximately 50% of ProTech graduates are still working at MGH. The challenges are tracking students and providing adequate support mechanisms for their college years. Conclusion: Although no formal qualitative data have been collected, the individual stories of success are riveting and support this initiative.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant in this session will be able to

• Define and describe the benefits of having a hospital based career development program for underserved youth.
• Understand how such programs add to improving the overall health of a community

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No