ARLINGTON, Va. -
They are suiting up for surgery, but they don't have medical degrees. At least not yet.
The patients are fake and the doctors and nurses are 6th and 7th graders. This is Camp Med and in the words of the students: "It's never boring."
It is a partnership between Virginia Hospital Center and Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA). The Virginia Healthcare and Hospital Association cover part of the cost.
The kids are in a mock operating room. They learn both traditional and laparoscopic surgery.
"The younger you get them to think about it, the better," says Stefanie Thompson of NOVA. "Once they get to high school, they already know what they want to do."
After putting her hand into a fake patient's stomach, 12-year-old Emily Talotta describes it as "really cold and gooey. It doesn't really feel that great."
Registered nurse and clinical specialist, Melissa Cabahug, helps teach the kids.
"This is a lot of fun. It helps us play for the day, let our hair down," says Cabahug.
Students pay just $30 for a week of the camp.
