Students from Traverse City and Grand Rapids unite on Health Campus for lab day

July 15, 2025 (Volume 48, Number 20)

Amber Shull in red shirt is in the middle of 2 students dressed in scrubs

Patrick Smith, at right, holds a laptop for students to see

Amber Shull, adjunct faculty of physician assistant studies, shows students how to properly glove and gown during a lab day on the Health Campus.

Photo Credit: Kendra Stanley-Mills

The Physician Assistant Studies department hosted a Clinical Applications Laboratory session in late May on the Health Campus that united students from the Grand Rapids and Traverse City cohorts.

Michelle Strange, assistant professor of physician assistant studies, spearheaded the event, assisted by faculty members from Grand Rapids and Traverse City.

The lab day was a core component of Clinical Applications Laboratory III, a course that emphasizes advanced history-taking, physical examination and procedural skills.

Students participated in two high-impact clinical training sessions. The first was an eFAST (Extended Focused Assessment with Sonography in Trauma) workshop held in the Finkelstein ultrasound lab, where students developed critical bedside ultrasound skills vital for trauma and emergency care. The second session in the DeVos Center for Interprofessional Health's simulated operating room focused on surgical scrubbing, gowning and gloving, giving students hands-on exposure to sterile techniques used in the operating room.

Beyond technical instruction, the day fostered a sense of community among PAS students, reinforcing the department's emphasis on professional identity formation and teamwork in health care.