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<p>DALLAS TWP. &#8212; Maddy Brdaric pushed the large plastic ball through the cloth &#8220;tunnel,&#8221; spun like a tornado on the little wheeled dolly and bounced like a human Pogo stick on the mini trampoline &#8212; her favorite, she noted. Then the 12-year-old girl who had come to Misericordia University&#8217;s Health Sciences Career Camp with no plans for her future job announced a decision.</p><p>&#8220;I am interested in getting a job in this,&#8221; the petite blonde with the broad smile said. &#8220;It sounded really fun to get into a career. I like the medical field.&#8221;</p><p>Occupational Therapy Assistant Professor Jennifer Dessoye, camp director, said all the gizmos the middle-school students reveled in were more than toys, they were proven methods to help children with sensory processing disorders such as autism cope with the real world in school.</p><p>The tunnel, for example, as well as a &#8220;body sock,&#8221; help children who struggle to stay still by confining them in a safe way, calming them for a spell. The spinning, rocking and bouncing items gave students vestibular stimulation that can sooth an urge to run, fidget or otherwise physically keep in motion.</p><p>&#8220;This is stuff kids use in schools so they can act properly in class,&#8221; Dessoye said. &#8220;It only works for a short duration, so they may do this for 10 or 15 minutes and go back to class for an hour, then do it again.&#8221;</p><p>The &#8220;sensory lab&#8221; was only one of many sessions students participated in from Monday through this Friday. In a nearby classroom students were learning to create custom splints. In the morning, they had learned about sonography and X-rays. Upcoming sessions include an athletic trainer showing how to tape joints, a visit to an outpatient clinic and some exposure to medical imaging equipment.</p><p>The goal is to give firsthand experience in the newest technologies and techniques in the health science professions.</p><p>For Maddy, it seemed to work, as she found an unexpected interest in a profession she hadn&#8217;t considered. For Joe Gacek, an eighth-grader from West Pittston, it was more of a side stop on the way to his chosen career, pharmacy.</p><p>&#8220;I like everything here,&#8221; he said. &#8220;But my true passion is math.&#8221; It&#8217;s just not a strong enough passion to study math alone, so he opted for pharmacy because &#8220;it involves chemistry, and chemistry uses math.&#8221;</p><p>Well, maybe you could calculate things like body sock pressure while trying to do jumping jacks, spin rates needed to get dizzy and impact forces when gleefully bouncing up and down.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Joe Gacek of West Pittston inside a body sock attempts jumping jacks during the Health Sciences Career Camp at Misericordia University in Dallas on Tuesday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_healthsciences01.jpg</photo0><caption0>Joe Gacek of West Pittston inside a body sock attempts jumping jacks during the Health Sciences Career Camp at Misericordia University in Dallas on Tuesday. </caption0><photoCredit0>Pete G. Wilcox | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_healthsciences02.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Maddy Brdaric of Shavertown is spun around on a turntable by camp director Jennifer Dessoye during an experiment at the Health Sciences Career Camp at Misericordia University in Dallas on Tuesday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_healthsciences02.jpg</photo1><caption1>Maddy Brdaric of Shavertown is spun around on a turntable by camp director Jennifer Dessoye during an experiment at the Health Sciences Career Camp at Misericordia University in Dallas on Tuesday. </caption1><photoCredit1>Pete G. Wilcox | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Health Sciences Career Camp held at Misericordia University</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mark Guydish</p><p>mguydish@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Middle School students learn about health care careers