Yarehely Salinas hopes to overcome her aversion to blood this summer during an internship at Starr County Memorial Hospital.

Set to be a senior at Rio Grande City High School this fall, the 17-year-old and 13 other students are participating in a seven-week summer internship at Starr County Memorial Hospital.

The students, all enrolled in South Texas College's Dual Enrollment Medical Science Academy, will shadow hospital employees in seven different departments: emergency room, radiology, laboratory, obstetrics, nursing stations, pharmacy and cardiopulmonary.

The program is part of the two-year academy's requirements, said program retention specialist Jessica Garcia.

Students in the academy attend their high school classes in the morning and STC in the afternoon. The dual enrollment initiative has been in place for three years at STC's Starr County campus.

"It's an awesome program," says Yarehely, who watched staff draw blood the first day of her internship on June 30. "It gives you more opportunities ... We're getting the opportunity to learn things younger than most people."

Alejandra Garcia, another 17-year-old rising senior at Rio Grande City High School, was allowed to look at bacteria under a microscope, as well as shadow the lab technicians as they drew patients' blood.

"It's pretty cool. At first I was like, ‘Oh my God,' (but) I kind of like it," said Alejandra about the blood sample collection.
The students' internship is set to end Aug. 14.

Jennifer L. Berghom covers education and general assignments for The Monitor. She can be reached at (956) 683-4462.