Teachers and administrators from Suffolk Public Schools and The Pruden Center updated their knowledge last week during a three-day program on careers available in health care.

Sponsored by Opportunity, Inc. and the Peninsula Council for Workforce Development, Careers in Healthcare instructed teachers and administrators on how to prepare students for “careers of the future,” says Nansemond River High School marketing education teacher Michele Duncan.

“It gave the educators and administrators a blueprint on how to best prepare today’s students,” Duncan stated in a news release.

“They received labor market information on the needs of the industry, learned requirements for entry into health care careers and were exposed to cutting-edge health care opportunities currently available in Hampton Roads.”

The program, according to Duncan, covered health care careers pitched at a variety of education levels, including GEDs, high school diplomas and medical degrees and certifications.

Information was presented “in a career highway format with on-ramps and off-ramps of opportunities for a diverse level of student training needs,” Duncan stated.

“The opportunities for post-secondary education in Hampton Roads were also presented.”

The program’s first day involved guest speakers and an interactive activity giving the educators and administrators “a career-immersion experience in a day in the life of a health care professional,” according to Duncan.

“Day two was a fieldtrip to (Hampton’s) Sentara CarePlex Hospital, which included the SIM Lab and the Hampton University Proton Therapy Institute.”

The final day, meanwhile, was a fieldtrip to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, where participants toured three departments, she stated.

Duncan says she was enlightened by the experience.

“Students need to know what their options are and the health care industry will always be here to serve us,” she stated.

“I feel that the salaries will get their attention — it certainly got my attention.”