Student Internships: Mutual Benefits in Osteoporosis Health Care and Research

• Published in: Drug information journal 1997, Vol.31 (1), p.295-300
• Main Authors: Giovenella, Albert J., Repmann, Susan M., Abruzzo, John A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biomedical materials; Bone diseases; Children; Colleges & universities; Community health care; Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry; Education; Health care; Health care facilities; Internships; Kinesiology; Medical personnel; Occupational health; Osteoporosis; Schools; Students; Teachers
• ISSN: 2168-4790; 0092-8615; 2168-4804; 2164-9200
• DOI: 10.1177/009286159703100143

Health care professionals and teachers speak of targeting a younger population (children and adolescents) in the need for education about building bone health. West Chester University has one of the largest and most sophisticated Schools of Health and Kinesiology (Physical Education) and is developing students who will be future health teachers throughout America. Very often, graduating students have a difficult time in securing a first job because of a lack of related work experience after having to devote their past four years to studies. It would be a great asset if the future health teachers and health professionals could enjoy experience in the areas related to bone health in the form of internships during their course work. A well-planned, well-supervised internship program employing health and kinesiology majors, premedical students, and science majors will allow these students to receive course credit while obtaining first-hand experience with community health care professionals in the care of patients with metabolic bone diseases. The host osteoporosis center, women's health center, Dual Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry (DEXA) center, or research institution will benefit from extra help in patient attention or increase its research output. This will be especially important as a new concentration of osteoporosis education in addition to an increased incidence of the disease place significant stress on the personnel at these centers. Moreover, there is an opportunity to build research and education partnerships between industry, academia, and the bone care centers. The by-product of such relationships would be “real world” educational experiences to enrich the lives of students who are likely to be tomorrow's teachers.