Student support program provides real-world experience while assisting staff needs

Students in the Ozarks got an inside look at health care while providing CoxHealth with extra help in clinical areas during the Omicron surge.

March 4, 2022 Newsroom

Students in the Ozarks got an inside look at health care while providing CoxHealth with extra help in clinical areas during the Omicron surge.

Cara Hawks and Samantha Boyer attend Missouri State University and are studying health care-related fields. Hawks wants to be a physical therapist and Boyer wants to become a nurse.

Both students answered the call CoxHealth sent out in mid-January to work in temporary support positions around the system. CoxHealth also asked staff to help via Team 19. Both efforts were created to bolster area clinical staff.

Hawks, who previously worked for CoxHealth for two years and left her job in May 2021, said she didn’t think she’d get the opportunity to come back and work in a program associated with physical therapy.

“It was a job I was comfortable with and when I saw they needed help, I realized it was something that would be easy for me to step up into,” said Hawks.

As a Rehab Therapy Tech, Hawks helped therapists by being an extra set of hands when providing treatment for a patient.

Boyer said this opportunity provided her with her first job in the health care field. When she wasn’t in clinicals or class, Boyer was sent to various nursing units throughout Cox South. No matter what floor she was on, Boyer would serve as a CNA, certified nursing assistant. She would help nursing staff by taking care of call lights, vitals, meals and other general duties.

“You can tell it’s very needed during this time. I feel like my work is making a difference. It’s helped me to understand how health care is structured,” said Boyer.

Both students say the nursing and therapy staff have been grateful for the help provided. Hawks and Boyer say this opportunity has put what they’ve learned in the textbooks to practice.

“That hands-on experience before you go to grad school or before you start your career is so important, being able to get your foot in the door is really good,” said Hawks.

Share this article