JABSOM's Huakaʻi Initiative Gives Local School Leaders a Hands-On Look at Medical School

JABSOM opened its doors this week to more than 50 administrators, principals, and career counselors from across Hawaiʻi as part of its Huakaʻi Initiative, one of our school's largest outreach programs.

Now in its third year, Huakaʻi is designed to introduce students across the state to careers in medicine, and the efforts have paid off.

"Since Huakaʻi launched, we've seen requests for campus visits grow," said Dr. Jaimie Tom, director of JABSOM's Huakaʻi Initiative. "We're getting requests from middle schools and elementary schools, so people understand the value of our outreach."

Over the last three years, Huakaʻi leaders have visited more than a dozenHawaiʻi schools, planting the seeds of a career in medicine in students across the state, but on this day, the focus shifted to those who guide students every day. Representatives from public and private schools, including Pearl City High, Sacred Hearts Academy, Punahou, Iolani, and schools on Molokaʻi and Kauaʻi, spent the day learning about JABSOM's programs and experiencing firsthand what it's like to train as a medical student.

"It starts with school leaders," said Tom. "They're the ones who know the students best. When they see curiosity begin to form, they can help connect the dots, and now they know exactly who to reach out to at JABSOM to further their students' interest in medicine."

Local school officials met with Dr. Kelley Withy, director of JABSOM's Area Health Education Center, which guides students of all ages on a path to medicine. They learned how to utilize AHEC's resources best to get interested students on a path to medicine. Then, guided by Steven Labrash, officials toured JABSOM's Bone and Anatomy labs, learning about the physiological aspects of medical school. Ending the tour, administrators got an up-close, hands-on look at treating patients via simulation manikins from Dr. Jannet Lee-Jayaram and Kris Hara.



"It was really great coming here to JABSOM to experience what it's like to bring real-life simulation to our students," Dr. Elizabeth Loehr, upper school principal at Sacred Hearts Academy, said. "When they can make a mannequin cough or see its eyes dilate, it connects what they're learning in class to real-world application. That's a different experience than what's possible in a classroom lab." 

Loehr said the visit gave her tools to strengthen her school's programs.

" I think about the girls that are taking their anatomy and physiology class or AP biology and really bringing that real-world application to them," she said. "So as they're exploring their career trajectory and wanting to go into the medical field, just having that exposure and putting what they're seeing on paper, into real life and experiencing that will help them so much more."

The goal of the Huakaʻi tour and demonstration was to equip administrators with the knowledge of what the medical school offers so they can bring that information back to their campuses. As several Hawaiʻi high schools have established career academy programs, Tom says it's critical to connect with students before they reach high school.

"You can't wait until college or even high school to figure this out," Tom said. " I've interacted with some students who are in the health academy, and when you ask them if they're interested in health, they say 'no,' but they got put in that health academy in high school and now they're sort of in that track, so we want to be able to give the students an idea of what a medical track looks like when it comes time to make that decision, especially if their school has academies. We want to plant the seeds early, that way students truly understand their options before they're locked into a track."

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