Medical school students from the Sault have been taking part in a summer program aimed at placing them in real-life medical situations
It’s well known that Sault Ste. Marie remains in dire need of doctors.
But it’s also good to know that Sault natives, like Emily Soares and Cassandra Breckenridge, are attending NOSM University in Sudbury with the intention of practising medicine in their hometown.
The second-year students are currently taking part in the Summer Studentship Program in the Sault, which allows first and second-year medical school students to observe real-life medical situations in several areas, including cardiology, pediatrics and oncology.
Despite extensive prior health care experience as a registered nurse, Soares said she was pleasantly surprised when she was accepted by NOSM University.
“I had been wait-listed by NOSM for two years. Then in May 2024 I learned I got in, and I was ecstatic,” Soares told SooToday.
Breckenridge — who is also an experienced registered nurse wait-listed by NOSM University — was happy when she learned she was accepted by the medical school.
“I was so excited. I’m really enjoying it at NOSM. The courses are in-depth and what we’re learning about anatomy is really interesting to me,” Breckenridge said.
Soares earned her undergraduate and master’s degrees in nursing from the University of Western Ontario. She worked for six years as a registered nurse at Algoma Public Health and in emergency departments across both northern Ontario and Saskatchewan.
“I wanted to have a larger role in patient care,” Soares said when asked why she decided to go to medical school.
“I really enjoy the hands-on aspect of nursing but I wanted to know the reasons behind what brought patients into the hospital, and I found that curiosity is what led me to pursue further education and become a doctor.
“I want to understand why someone is ill and how I can best support them.”
Breckenridge, meanwhile, became a registered nurse through studies at Sault College and Laurentian University before working at Sault Area Hospital.
She credits her parents, in part, for inspiring her to attend medical school.
“My mom was the first aid person at school, and my dad worked in emergency services at Algoma Steel,” Breckenridge said. “The nursing field also had me thinking ‘I want to do more.’ I wanted to spend extra time with patients.”
Students who are taking part in the Summer Studentship Program have been gaining clinical experience at Sault Area Hospital, Group Health Centre and the Superior Family Health Team as part of the month-long program offered by the Sault Ste. Marie Physician Recruitment and Retention Committee.
“My first day at the hospital was in the ICU. It was awesome,” Soares said.
“I shadowed in a lot of departments. I had a day with respiratory therapists at the hospital and they were fantastic about really getting into the details of respiratory airways.”
This year’s Summer Studentship Program hosted seven first-year medical school students and three second-year students — eight of which are from the Sault.
Both Soares and Breckenridge emphasized they’re interested in returning to work as doctors in their hometown.
“I definitely want to practice in Sault Ste. Marie,” said Soares. “I like critical care, so my interests currently are internal medicine, the emergency department and ICU.”
Both Soares and Breckenridge were among a group of nine female medical students in the Summer Studentship Program who shared their experiences at a Medical School Information Night held earlier this week at SAH.
Hosted by the Sault Ste. Marie Physician Recruitment and Retention Committee, the information session was attended by approximately 50 high school students, university students and parents.
Soares and Breckenridge agreed that it’s been an honour to participate in the Summer Studentship Program.
“The hospital staff and the physicians have been very welcoming,” said Breckenridge. “It’s really neat to see patients get excited when they’re told by a doctor ‘I have a medical school student with me’ because we need physicians here.”
The jobs are there for medical school graduates who want to practise in the Sault, according to Tasha Varpio, who is the manager of the Sault Ste. Marie Physician Recruitment and Retention Committee.
Varpio says the highest-priority recruitment areas currently include primary care, obstetrics and gynecology, general surgery, plastic surgery, pathology and psychiatry.
“Several areas continue to experience significant recruitment pressure,” Varpio told SooToday.
The number of seats for new students at NOSM has been increased in response to this pressure, with preference given to applicants from northern Ontario.
There are also incentives for those wanting to go to medical school, including Ontario government’s Learn and Stay Grant, where eligible medical students can receive full tuition if they commit to working in underserved communities like the Sault.
Both Soares and Breckenridge recommend medical school as a pathway into the health care sector.
“I would absolutely recommend it to anybody who has a passion for it,” Breckenridge said.