Jordyn Austin, left, and Abby Davis, both second year medical students at OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine, pose together while at Operation Orange. — Jordyn Austin, left, and Abby Davis, both second year medical students at OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine, volunteered to work at this year's Operation Orange medical summer camps. Both also attended Operation Orange as high school students interested in a career in medicine.

Med students volunteer at camp they once attended

Monday, June 14, 2021

Media Contact: Sara Plummer | Communications Coordinator | 918-561-1281 | sara.plummer@okstate.edu

For several medical students from the Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine, volunteering at this year’s Operation Orange gave them a taste of their past.

Second year medical students Abby Davis and Jordyn Austin both attended when they were in high school. OSU Center for Health Sciences’ Operation Orange is a one-day medical school camp that travels across the state to multiple rural communities each summer giving high school students a taste of what being a medical student is like.

Davis, from Mustang, and Austin, from Norman, both attended Operation Orange because they were interested in studying medicine.

“I remember listening to heart, lung and abdomen sounds, looking at organs and learning to intubate,” Austin said. “I remember being scared to break the teeth even then, which is still something to be careful of as we learn now as medical students.”

Davis attended the event in Stillwater because of her interest in medicine as well as her interest in attending OSU.

“I remember being very excited about all of the new skills I gathered. I think I was most infatuated with the suturing station,” Davis said. “The medical students working the event were incredibly helpful and kind.”

Both pursued their dream and enrolled at OSU-COM.

“OSU provided my favorite interview day out of the schools I applied to,” Davis said. “Campus felt comfortable, the faculty seemed intentional, and the students were welcoming.”

Austin had a similar experience.

"I felt the family atmosphere at my interview and was less anxious that day because of the kind faces everywhere," Austin said. "I also wanted to stay in Oklahoma, and the osteopathic philosophy aligns well with how I wanted to practice as a physician — treating the patient as a whole person rather than just focusing in on their problem area."

And while COVID-19 brought unexpected challenges to their first year of medical school, it didn’t ruin the experience. And both jumped at the chance to return to Operation Orange, this time as medical student volunteers.

“I had a great time attending as a high school student and I loved being able to provide a similarly fun experience,” Davis said. “It’s gratifying to look back at my education between now and then, recognizing that I am now able to teach these medical procedures that I have always been awed by.”

It was a sentiment shared by Austin.

“I enjoyed the experience in high school and wanted to pass on the experience to those interested in medicine,” Austin said. “It feels like it’s come full circle, helping show high school students different medical skills as a medical student at a camp I once attended myself.

"It’s really gratifying.”