By Trevor Mitchell, The Standard | 0 comments

The fourth needle that pierced the arm resting on the table took a while to properly inject its contents into a vein, but there were no complaints.

It might have been different if the arm had been attached to anyone.

This wasn’t a scene from Saw XXVI; just Friday morning at Missouri State University’s Nurse for a Day program, which is aimed at high school students interested in the nursing field.

The arm, which, thankfully, was not a real human limb, was one of several hands-on activities that allowed students to experience MSU’s Nursing Simulation Center.

Students practiced tying a tourniquet, using stethoscopes and blood pressure cuffs and got to take a look at some of the medical mannequins that MSU uses to train nurses.

They also toured the campus and had a question-and-answer session with a panel of local nurses to round out the day’s activities.

Louise Bigley, an instructor assisting with the program, said that she thought the program was extremely important for the students, due to the exposure they get to educational nursing settings and the university’s nursing department.

Bigley also said that she didn’t have any opportunities like this when she was a student, although she would have loved the chance to.

Jan Atwell, a clinical supervisor with the Nursing Department, echoed this sentiment. Atwell said past attendees have told her they remember attending Nurse for a Day and the effect it had on their nursing career.

Kami Gollhofer, a marketing, recruitment and retention specialist with the Nursing Department, said that the program was created three years ago as a way to showcase the new simulation labs that the department had built.

She’s heard lots of positive feedback as well and said she couldn’t think of another program like this one.

Gollhofer said that other departments have actually contacted the Missouri State Nursing Department, asking for help setting up similar programs to attract students.

The Nurse for a Day program is extremely popular — it’s held four times a year and hosts around 50 students each session. The program director of the Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Kristina Henry, said that there are always waiting lists for students to attend.

Allie Hagler, a high school student who attended the program, said that she planned on becoming a nursing student and that Nurse for a Day had only reinforced that plan.

“It was a great experience,” Hagler said. “I’d recommend it to anyone.”