Ten years ago we set out to mentor future nurses by "buddying" them up with a nurse for three hours each week during the summer.  The program was a huge success and was nationally recognized within the first five years in two major volunteer publications and we shared the program with many other hospitals.

In 2004 the program was published in The American Hospital Association’s “Workforce Ideas in Action.”  It was one of fifteen nationwide programs that were considered for program of the year at the 2004 National Conference of the American Association of Volunteer Directors in Hospitals.  In 2005 we presented the program at the national conference of volunteer directors in healthcare in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

What started out as Nurse 2 Nurse, moved on to Doctor 2 Doctor in quick order.  We found that many of the students signed up for the nursing program, but they wanted to be physicians.  With the help of our nursing education department, the program grew and diversified with ease.  Training includes HIPAA, infection control, and panel made up of college students who are in pre-med programs around the country, information about required courses for entry into a pre-healing arts program, and all the normal volunteer information.

The main reason that the program works so well is the amount of cooperation we have received from our physicians and nurses.  They do not hesitate to mentor our students, and allow them a close up look at careers in medicine.  We have 27 doctors and many willing nurses who take part in our program each year.

We require a minimum 3.50 grade point average for the N2N Program and a 3.75 for the D2D Program, plus references from guidance counselors and educators.  Students must be following a curriculum that will allow them admission to college programs for healthcare careers.  There is a full day of training and the student must be present for the entire day.  No exceptions.  The Doctor 2 Doctor Program runs for four weeks and the Nurse 2 Nurse Program runs for eight weeks.   We ask the medical professional to keep their student by their side for a minimum of three hours per week.  The schedule should work for both parties.

If you would like to be part of the program, please call Fran Braun as soon as possible at 717-291-8126.   These programs fill up long before our summer courses begin.  We will ask the students to interview and present references from guidance counselors and teachers prior to sign-up.