ATHABASCA – High school students at Edwin Parr Composite School (EPC) and Boyle School got the opportunity to try on a variety of health care hats April 15 during the second-ever skills day hosted by Athabasca’s Healthcare Attraction and Retention Committee.
Students got to try their hand at a variety of skills, including sutures, CPR and learning how to insert an IV or an intubation tube, with instruction provided by doctors, nurses, and EMTs. Committee members say the goal is to show students they can have a flourishing career in the field in rural Alberta.
“We didn’t have opportunities like that back (when I was in school),” said Town of Athabasca Mayor Rob Balay. “Especially for the 40 students that signed up, they had some inclination that it was something they were interested in, and I think after spending that day and that time in those stations that it reinforced that path.”
The event returned after a successful first showing in 2023. This year, the committee went ahead with the project with the support of Aspen View after failing to obtain a Rural Health Professions Action Plan (RhPAP) grant that had helped fund the event.
“The committee really sees the value in it, when you train local, in a local environment, you have a much better success rate of those locals coming back and working in a rural setting,” said Balay. “That’s our goal, and we see the value in making an investment to make sure that happens.”
During a bagged lunch provided by the EPC foods program, students got the chance to ask a panel of local health care practitioners questions. Panel members included: local registered massage therapist Camille Wallach; chiropractor Dr. Alyssia Strandlund; Danikah Laackmann, a licensed practical nurse at the Athabasca Healthcare Centre; and Colleen Jobin, an Indigenous Liaison with AHS.
“It’s important to give students an opportunity to realize that there are more options for them. I know when I was in high school, we did those crazy computerized career tests and it’s like, ‘Oh you should do this,’ but people don’t realize how many options there are,” said Strandlund after the panel. “Seeing different skill sets that nurses, paramedics or whoever do and then hearing the panel for all these different options is great.”
Strandlund shared her own career journey, which started with two degrees at the University of Alberta before moving to the United States for higher education and finishing her chiropractor preceptorship in Nanaimo, B.C.
Strandlund and Wallach both spoke to the benefits rural communities have when it comes to small business ownership as well. The two women have each started businesses in Athabasca and said there are definite advantages to a small town environment.
“The opportunity in this community alone over the next ten years is fun to see, there’s a lot of people retiring at this point,” said Wallach, who’s seen her business Local Wellness flourish since it opened in 2023. “There’s great opportunity here to start or take over a business without some of that financial risk.”
Aspen View board trustee Anne Karczmarczyk said the committee — and school division — were eager to bring the opportunity back after seeing how well received it was in 2023.
“We didn’t want to miss this group of students after word got out about how great it was,” she said. “It’s been exciting to see the kids participate and be inspired. Some may have come today thinking, ‘I may have been a little interested,’ and now they are, or it may have opened up some ideas for them.”
Karczmarczyk also thanked the instructors, who came in on a day off or carved out a day in their work week to make the experience possible.
“The best part about witnessing things like this is that all the instructors are from our community and now they get to give back. It’s been wonderful listening to them talk about their journeys, education, or how they found their profession,” she said.
“From the bottom of our hearts, their dedication and commitment is so appreciated.”
