STARS of tomorrow

 

Rural communities that lack doctors find themselves caught in a vicious circle.

Doctors from urban areas are hard to attract because of the lower salaries and harsh conditions in the sticks, and kids who grow up in the sticks are unlikely to become doctors because they have no role models.

New Mexico has been caught in this bind for decades. In fact, according to Sonlatsa Jim-Martin, community coordinator for the University of New Mexico's BA/MD program, 31 of the state's 33 counties have parts that are designated "health professional shortage areas."

In an effort to produce more homegrown doctors, UNM recently developed the Medical STARS program, which came to Gallup and Bread Springs, N.M., for the first time last month.

Thirty high school and middle school students in the Gallup and Breadsprings areas were invited to learn more about the medical professions, with UNM's pre-med students as mentors.

"I think the goal was to let them see people who are actually still going through the training, so they get the idea they can do it too," said Brian Lopez, a junior from Tucumcari, N.M., who hopes to be an emergency room physician in an underserved rural community.

"Sometimes kids just need someone to tell them they can do it."

The students got an overview of various medical professions, saw a movie called "Unnatural Causes: Bad Sugar" about the effects of diabetes on Native communities, and got to try their hand at taking blood pressure readings and administering an intravenous drip (don't worry, the IVs were done on special simulators, not people).

"It was hard," said Adrianna Bitsie, 12, a Tohatchi Middle School student who attended the Bread Springs session. "Harder than I thought. But I still want to be a doctor, more than ever."

Bitsie said her mom always wanted her to be a nurse, but when she thought about it, she thought, 'Why not go all the way'?

"I'm really good with kids," she said. "I know how to make them laugh and put them at ease. I'd like to be a pediatrician, so I can help them."

Bitsie admits she doesn't know any doctors and has no idea how to become one. But that isn't going to stop her.

"I get good grades," she said. "I'm on the honor roll. So I know I can do it."

The Medical STARS program, she said, was a good start.

"I learned a lot. I didn't even know there were different categories of doctors," she said.

Her only regret about the session? "I wish my whole school could have done it."

Jim-Martin, for her part, also wished the audience had been larger than the 30 students who participated.

"I think it went very well and it was exciting to see the college pre-med students conduct the session," she said. "I have not seen any youth programs get this specific and detailed about the health professions and how it relates to our communities. We hope it will be an annual summer event."

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