Lewis Katz School of Medicine’s Health Careers Exploration Days featured hands-on workshops exploring healthcare professions with students from the North Philadelphia community.

“I think this patient needs an X-ray,” said Christina Briggs as she examined the 55-year-old patient with shortness of breath. 

The “patient,” in this case, was a human patient simulator—a realistic, computer-controlled mannequin used in medical education to mimic human anatomy and physiology at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine’s William Maul Measey Institute for Clinical Simulation and Patient Safety. 

The “doctor” was Briggs, a seventh grader from Mary McLeod Bethune School in North Philadelphia, who visited Katz on March 6 as part of the medical school’s Health Careers Exploration Day program, held in collaboration with Temple Health. Bethune is located just three blocks from Temple’s Health Sciences Center. 

Throughout their morning at Katz, Briggs and 30 of her classmates were divided into groups and rotated through five hands-on learning stations where they practiced clinical skills using high-fidelity patient simulators and engaged with medical students and faculty to learn about the wide range of careers available in healthcare, science and research. 

Temple medical students and faculty guided Bethune students through the steps of patient care, including how to take a patient’s history, listen to a heartbeat and read vital signs on a monitor. 

Manuel Sackey, a fourth-year medical school student, led Briggs and her classmates through the simulated examination of the patient with shortness of breath and walked the students through possible diagnoses and treatment options.  

“We are looking at a differential diagnosis,” Sackey said. “This means we have to narrow down the possibilities because many diseases share similar symptoms.” 

After completing the exam, the students ultimately determined that the patient had pneumonia. 

At another station, students interacted with a pediatric patient simulator with asthma. They practiced taking a medical history by asking questions to a medical student role-playing as the patient’s mother, such as “When was he diagnosed with asthma?” and “Does he take any medications?” 

Nicole Miller-Allen, program coordinator at Katz, said incorporating asthma into the activity was intentional. 

"In 2023, The Philadelphia Inquirer noted that childhood asthma rates in North Philadelphia were higher than the national average,” she said. “Many children in our community have asthma and may have questions about it, so we made sure asthma education was a part of our program.” For Briggs, the simulations resonated with her own experience. 

“I have asthma, and I’ve been hospitalized before for it,” she said. “Being here is giving me more understanding of how doctors learn before they start treating patients.” 

Students were also able to explore 3D technology and virtual reality simulations to see the inner workings of various organs as part of the technology at Katz’s Innovation Space. 

The immersive experience was designed to introduce Bethune seventh graders to real-world medical training in a safe, supportive environment while highlighting the academic pathways that lead to careers in healthcare.

Aliya Catanch-Bradley, former principal of Bethune School and now principal advisor for the North Philadelphia Promise Zone, notes that Katz’s location is particularly relevant for Bethune students. 

“We are very grateful for the many opportunities that have been afforded to Bethune students,” said Catanch-Bradley. “Our students live a stone’s throw from the medical school campus, and this trip gave them access to learn more about careers they may not see every day and to meet the professionals who work right in their neighborhood. These are powerful seeds being planted—seeds that will come to fruition later, and that is what education is all about.”

Beyond hosting students on-site at Katz’s North Philadelphia campus, the Health Careers Exploration Day program also brings Temple teams on-site to students’ classrooms. On Feb. 25, medical students joined faculty and staff from Temple Health at nearby Kenderton Elementary to lead hands-on workshops for 80 sixth- through eighth-grade students exploring careers in nursing, emergency medicine, pediatrics, surgery, research and more. 

Kenderton’s principal, Deanna Bredell, emphasized the impact the day had on the students. 

“The Health Careers Exploration Day was a standout success for our students,” she said. “They truly enjoyed the hands-on nature of the visit and gained a much clearer understanding of various medical career paths through the interactive activities. Seeing our students engage so deeply with the Temple medical students by asking thoughtful questions and seeing themselves represented in the field was incredibly impactful. It didn’t just teach them about medicine; it sparked a genuine sense of possibility for their own futures.”

Reflecting Katz’s longstanding commitment to expanding access to medical education, strengthening community partnerships and inspiring the next generation of healthcare leaders, Health Careers Exploration Day programs are organized by the Office of Strategic Partnership in Health, Education and Resources (SPHERE), which focuses on improving health, opportunity and well-being in North Philadelphia through community-focused initiatives and addressing social determinants of health.  

“When students first arrive, most are familiar with roles like doctors, nurses and dentists, but they often have limited awareness of careers such as X-ray technicians, lab technologists or podiatrists,” said Abiona Berkeley, senior associate dean at SPHERE and professor of clinical anesthesiology. “Through hands-on activities that demonstrate suturing, CPR, DNA extraction and blood pressure checks, they’re able to see different paths in healthcare firsthand and the ways in which we interact. Our surveys show the impact—interest in healthcare careers increased by 19% from 49% before the program to 68% afterward, thanks to the collaborative efforts of dozens of Temple faculty, residents, students and health system leaders who help bring these experiences to life.”

“Programs like Health Careers Exploration Day reflect what it means to be part of this community,” said Amy J. Goldberg, Marjorie Joy Katz Dean of the Katz School. “Our responsibility is to educate the next generation of healthcare leaders, and to ensure that students from our community can see themselves in these roles. We’re committed to showing young people that they belong in the future of medicine.”

For Bethune student Zaire Wilkerson, the hands-on activities made a big impression.  

“At first I wasn’t sure what to expect when we got here,” he said. “But being able to use the simulations means we’re actually in the moment and role playing as the doctor. This is really fun and exciting.”