Pupils from Saint Paul’s recently took part in National Pathology Week with a visit to Wythenshawe Hospital.
Staff and students had a fantastic time at the National Pathology Week event at Wythenshawe Hospital Education Centre where, along with groups from four other local schools, the students received a warm welcome by the event organiser, Sue Wright and her team.
Ushered into the centre’s main lecture theatre, the students were briefed on the myriad of career options available within the NHS followed by a quiz about Pathology and the History of the NHS using technical response devices that were distributed earlier in the session.
The students were then introduced to one of the hospital’s consultant pathologists who gave a riveting presentation on “Superbugs” like MRSA, Tuberculosis and Ebola.
The students then entered a ‘carousel’ on the various areas of pathology such as: Mycology, Phlebotomy, Transfusions, Haematology, Cytology, Microbiology, Histology and Biochemistry, many of which required student engagement. During this time, they were able to speak with a variety of specialists about their career paths and nature of their day-to-day responsibilities.
Mr Harvey Kennedy, Science teacher, said: “The event was fantastic, the pupils were able to get involved with a number of exciting hands-on activities which provided an excellent insight into the work of an NHS pathology laboratory.”
“Many of the workshops revolved around haematology – identifying blood groups, looking at different blood diseases (e.g. sickle cell anaemia, leukaemia, sleeping disease, etc.), how blood tests are carried out in the hospital (what the job of a phlebotomist involves). There was a stall about histology, biochemistry and different types of fungus as well.”
“The staff from the Pathology department introduced the pupils to some of the techniques and procedures used to diagnose and monitor disease and spent some time with them discussing scientific careers in the NHS,” added Mr Kennedy.
“The event focused on the magic and science of pathology and appealed to our pupils’ interest in medicine and science,” commented Mr Alex Hren, Head Teacher.
“The sessions were fast-paced instilling a sense of excitement and wonder; the visit definitely captured the attention and enthusiasm of our pupils. We are sure that it will inspire and engage our pupils even more in their science studies.”
