Puyallup High teacher inspires students to explore careers in medicine

Now starting her 13th year teaching medical careers classes at Puyallup High School, Pam Reichel has inspired many graduating students to go on to medical career programs at technical colleges and universities.

Today, she keeps in touch with many of them on Facebook to encourage their success.

In May, the Puyallup School District Board of Directors awarded Reichel the 2015 Career and Technical Education (CTE) Teacher of the Year, namely for her role as instructor of the Medical Careers Academy at Puyallup High School, a magnet program open to all district high school students, which she started in the 2008-2009 school year.

“Pam basically built this program from the ground up,” said Mark Knight, the school district’s executive director of college and career readiness. “It is a reflection of her, and it is a phenomenal program.”

Reichel started working at Puyallup High 16 years ago, first as a substitute secretary in the career center and then as a substitute paraeducator.

Before working at Puyallup, Reichel had a successful career as an emergency medical technician and also marketing and sales stints in both medical equipment and assisted living facilities.

When Reichel’s daughter was 8 or 9, she decided to pull back from the busy, high-demand career and do something that would allow more time with her daughter.

Three years into her work at Puyallup High, Reichel decided to put her medical career prowess to use and earned a CTE certification from Bates Technical College. Reichel recently earned her master’s in family consumer science with an emphasis on CTE.

Reichel also teaches Medical Terminology, Intro to Medical Careers, and an anatomy and physiology class and advises the school’s Health Occupations Students of America club.

The Medical Careers Academy is offered second semester. It is open to 14-20 students at a time and students must successfully pass anatomy and physiology to qualify for admission. The first half of the semester is focused on book work, learning about careers and discussion, Reichel said. The second half is devoted to site visits, where students visit medical professionals in the community.

Community partners in the program include MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital, Apple Physical Therapy, Pierce College, Sound Family Medicine and Children’s Therapy Unit.

“It’s important to me to get these kids out in the community and actually see the various healthcare careers open to them,” Reichel said.

Reichel said she is very thankful for the community partners’ willingness to open their doors and let the students see first-hand what they do.

“I couldn’t have done this without help from the medical community partners,” Reichel said. “MultiCare Good Samaritan has really been helpful with helping me with the program and allowing access.”

Last spring, Reichel said students visited Good Samaritan’s imaging department, rehabilitation department, children’s therapy unit, and did a full tour of the hospital. They also listened to the president of Good Samaritan talk about healthcare careers.

Senior Elizabeth Luong, HOSA’s treasurer, has taken Reichel’s medical terminology course. Luong is interested in a career in natural medicine.

“She is fun,” Luong said. “She cares about students and makes sure we succeed.”

Senior Sara Son, 17, is president of HOSA. Son will be in the 2016 Medical Careers Academy class, and has aspirations of being an optometrist. She said the five-year medical career plan that students do as their end project will help her to shape future goals. Son calls Reichel a “chill teacher.”

“You can really rely on her,” Son said. “She’s wonderful.”

Reichel has hopes to invite successful academy graduates, which she has connected with on Facebook, back to her class to talk about their successes. It’s also in her plan to add an internship that would be available to a qualifying academy student.

This story was originally published September 21, 2015 at 5:05 PM with the headline "Puyallup High teacher inspires students to explore careers in medicine."