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The Catholic High School of Baltimore's Marissa Nittinger observes stethoscope technique Jan. 10, 2024, with clinical instructor Dr. Celia Caballero during an Advanced Health Science and Clinical Skills class for seniors interested in the medical profession in the school's Jesse James Hinson Clinical Simulation Lab. (Kevin J. Parks/CR Staff)

Catholic High students get help on the path to biomedical careers


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Special to the Catholic Review Filed Under: Feature, Health Care, Local News, News, Schools

Students at The Catholic High School of Baltimore interested in pursuing a biomedical career are taking advantage of a unique opportunity thanks to a new partnership with LifeBridge Health.

Rising seniors in Catholic High’s biomed concentration can now shadow nurse practitioners, physician assistants and radiographers at LifeBridge’s ExpressCare Urgent Care Centers to gain in-person experience before college.

The first group of seven students participated last summer at locations around Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll and Harford counties. Catholic High plans to offer the program to biomed seniors year-round.

The Catholic High School of Baltimore senior Jaya Thaniel checks her mannequin patient’s ear canal during an Advanced Health Science and Clinical Skills class for seniors interested in the medical profession. (Kevin J. Parks/CR Staff)

They are supported at the school by Dr. Celia Caballero, a Cuban-trained pathologist, who coordinates the biomedical concentration in the school’s STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) program and teaches several classes.

The partnership was born after Dr. Kristina Spencer, a Catholic High alumna and board member, put the school in contact with Dr. Maurice Reid, ExpressCare’s founder and CEO. Reid was impressed with the infrastructure Catholic High already had in place – namely its clinical simulation lab, the only one of its kind at any Baltimore-area high school – and wanted to support the school and its students.

Dr. Jonathan Thierman, LifeBridge’s chief medical and integration officer, and Tracy Boulden, the director of clinical operations for ExpressCare, were instrumental in designing a two-week program where each student would spend 24 total hours shadowing and learning from nurses, radiographers and more.

“When you tell somebody that they’re going to have somebody following them around for a while, sometimes they can be a little hesitant, but they (the nurses) loved it,” Boulden said. “They took it as a moment to be a mentor, and with the personalities of the girls and everything, they enjoyed every moment
of it.”

The students wore badges and scrubs marked with the school logo that distinguished them from employees, but that doesn’t mean they were kept out of the fray. Armed with competency packets, they kept track of what they observed and practiced, from collecting samples and counting prescriptions to applying splints and running EKGs.

At the end of the two weeks, each student’s mentor gave them an evaluation of what they’d learned.

“A lot of the students made a connection with professionals at ExpressCare who were willing to write letters of recommendation for them for college,” said Dottie Taylor-Kastrunes, Catholic High’s academic and college counselor. “And I’m able to submit their competency sheets as an addition to their transcript to show the experience that they have had.”

Keicha Nadine Llanto, a Perry Hall native and parishioner of St. Isaac Jogues in Carney, worked at the Overlea location. Llanto is interested in the overlap of tech and medicine and may major in biomedical engineering or computer science.

“There’s so much to offer in the realm of biomed,” Llanto said. “By taking this opportunity you’re able to see the different specialties that you can go into.”

Catholic High senior Jourdyn Wright checks the temperature of her mannequin patient during a January 10, 2024, Advanced Health Science and Clinical Skills program for seniors interested in the medical profession. (Kevin J. Parks/CR Staff)

Another student, Marissa Nittinger, was stationed at the children’s urgent care in Bel Air. The Nottingham native and St. Joseph, Fullerton, parishioner strives to become a nurse practitioner.

“One of the things I really noticed when I walked in was how joyful people who work in healthcare are, just because they know that they’re helping people and they know that what they’re doing is bigger than themselves,” Nittinger said. “It was awesome to be a part of that for two weeks, because I feel like it’s an experience that not everybody’s going to get.”

“It was great to see high school students who were able to show up 10, 15 minutes early, who were eager, who were professional, who were well-spoken,” Boulden said. “It’s the beginning of something that could be really great.”

Catholic High’s STEM Program

The program enables students to begin an intense academic program in their freshman year with special emphasis in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

STEM Partnerships

The STEM Program offers students in-field experience with partners, LifeBridge Health – ExpressCare Urgent Care Centers and The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company. The school says this helps Catholic High’s students continue to be one step ahead of other high school students when applying for college and jobs in the STEM field.

Concentrations

• Engineering

• Biomedicine

• Sports Medicine

Requirements for Acceptance

Acceptance into the STEM Program is based on the following criteria. Students must:

• Complete the STEM Application (Students may apply for two different concentrations within the STEM Program. Applicants must submit a separate application for each concentration they are applying.)

• Score high in the areas of mathematics and science on standardized testing and the High School Placement Test.

• Maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.

• Complete Algebra I before the start of freshman year.

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