“Although the UH Summer Academy has come to a close, we had an experience that will be with us for a lifetime.” That was the consensus of first year UH Summer Academy students Tyra Miller (Lakeside High School) and Taylor Dufour (Edgewood Senior High School).

UH Student Academy, a program designed for local high school incoming seniors, was developed to reach out to students who are interested in pursuing a career in health care. UH Student Academy is a paid, eight-week internship where two students receive hands-on experience in a dynamic environment at both UH Conneaut Medical Center and UH Geneva Medical Center and in various facets of the organization.

“The inaugural UH Summer Academy far exceeded my expectations,” said Robert G. David, President UH Geneva Medical Center and UH Conneaut Medical Center.” Our employees, physicians and UH Senior Leaders, whom Tyra and Taylor had a chance to spend time with, all relished the opportunity teach them the vision and core values of University Hospitals. We wanted our students to have a hands-on experience in every department,” said David.

“Experiencing every department within the hospital helped me appreciate how important each department is to keep the hospital functioning successfully. Doctors and nurses are not the only employees of the hospital that are vital to its function,” said Miller. “Employees from maintenance, lab, and housekeeping are just as important. Working at UH has been a great experience and I would not have wanted to spend my summer in any other way.”

“This experience has been very interesting, seeing surgeries first-hand, MRIs, and physical therapy, and the things that go on behind the scenes,” said DuFour. “How many people can say they have been on the roof of a hospital with the maintenance department to see how the hospital’s climate is controlled? Or have been in the Lab of a hospital to see how the results of a test are actually found? I believe that the Student Academy accomplished its goal of giving us the understanding of how a hospital works as a system, relying on every department to function.”

It was the foresight of Jan Perala and Kay Raymond, pillars of the Geneva Community, who encouraged Dr. Amitabh Goel, UH Geneva Medical Center’s Chief Medical Officer and David to start the Academy.

“Since education is one of our core values, we gladly accepted their challenge,” said David. “We formed a committee, developed the eight-week curriculum at both Geneva and Conneaut and the application criteria. When I met with each high school principal, I told them we were looking for two great kids who are interested in pursuing careers in health care. Although I was not part of the selection committee, 17 students from the county completed the application and submitted an essay. Eight students were selected for the interview process and Tyra and Taylor were selected. The selection committee said all students were worthy of being selected for the Academy; however, we wanted to keep our first year’s program small to provide our students the best possible experience.”

“Although the Academy has concluded, it was memorable for all of us at UH Geneva and Conneaut medical centers,” says David. “The committee is already looking forward to improvements and enhancements for next year. On behalf of UH Geneva Medical Center and UH Conneaut Medical Center employees, physicians and leaders, we wish Tyra and Taylor the best in their future endeavors.”