Job shadowing has proven to be the most effective way to stimulate interest as well as awareness in health careers. It takes potential health professionals to the next level of the buyer decision process (discussed in Marketing 101 Revisited in The Strategist’s Toolkit section of this guide). Job shadowing also helps students determine early on which career choices are not a good match for their personalities, strengths and interests. Today’s students want—and need—to experience a career option first hand as they plan for high school courses and post-secondary education.

"Job shadowing is increasingly important for students because it acquaints them with the world of work through on-the-job experiences and a carefully crafted school curriculum that ties academics to the workplace throughout the year," said Stuart Shapiro. Shapiro is director of the National Job Shadow Coalition, now in its seventh year. Junior Achievement, America’s Promise and the U.S. Department of Labor lead the coalition, which sponsors Groundhog Shadowing Day each February 2. More than one million students and 100,000 businesses are expected to participate in 2004.

Healthcare providers have not participated in Groundhog Shadowing Day in large numbers, but a sample list of 2003 participants included the American Dental Association, Cook Children’s Hospital (Fort Worth, TX) and Kent County Hospital (Warwick, RI).

The University of Tennessee’s Educational Talent Search Program partnered with Junior Achievement and Knoxville’s Promise to place 1,000 students locally in 2003. Visits included accounting firms, radio and television stations, Best Buy, city and county governments, Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Ripley’s Aquarium (where the students fed sharks) and healthcare facilities.

The coalition’s web site at jobshadow.org includes a comprehensive reference guide for employers. Job Shadowing Made Simple includes 50 pages of tips, guidelines, forms and suggested activities useful in planning any structured job shadowing experience. Click here to download. Free hard copies also are available by mail on request.

Hospitals and Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) have created job shadowing experiences as unique as the facilities that sponsor them.

• Somerset Medical Center (Somerville, NJ) conducted a one-week camp focused on nursing. Ten teens reported at 7:30 a.m. to test-drive the life of a student nurse. They shadowed nurses in different units, learning basic skills like bed making, taking vital signs and feeding patients. "I love this," one 17-year-old participant effused as she stretched white hose on an elderly patient’s feet to help prevent blood clots. "I couldn’t ask for a better opportunity. I’m extremely happy." The hospital’s volunteer services department coordinated the camp. All 10 positions were quickly filled from the existing junior volunteer program. No further publicity was necessary.

• A similar program sponsored by the Southwest Area AHEC in Oklahoma partnered 19 rural high school students with a RN for a day shift shadowing experience. At the end of the shift, students met with a college representative who discussed the process of acceptance into nursing programs. Nursing students, educators and professional nurses answered questions during an open forum. For more information on "A Day in the Life of a Nurse," contact SWAHEC at 580-581-2284 or ahec@cameron.edu.

• A Youngstown, Ohio hospital hosts approximately 300 high school students for tours and job shadowing experiences each year. The students gather in a large auditorium to listen to managers of departments about typical jobs and workdays in their areas. The students watch a 20-minute video entitled "Making a Difference Through Health Care Careers," then select which area they wish to tour. Options include environmental services, laundry, nuclear medicine, physical and occupational therapy, nursing units, nutrition, print shop, laboratory and radiology. The video goes back to the school for future viewing by other interested students. Additional half-day programs are offered to high school seniors who are required to job shadow as a part of their senior projects.

• The Hospital Association of Rhode Island piloted a highly successful virtual job shadowing program (VJS) in 2002. Students from nine Rhode Island schools watched a cardiovascular surgeon perform triple bypass surgery, live, from the surgeon’s viewpoint, thanks to a camera mounted on the surgeon’s head. The procedure was beamed via television to the students, who took notes and asked questions from their classrooms. Brenda Gatlin attended a how-to symposium for hospital association staff in May 2003. For more information, contact Gatlin at 615-256-8240, bgatlin@tha.com.

A number of Tennessee hospitals have job shadowing programs, according to a November 2002 THA survey. If you would like to share details of your successful program, contact Bill Jolley, 615-256-8240, bjolley@tha.comm.