Pioneering students will explore medicine, pharmacy, physical therapy and occupational therapy pathways while developing collaborative leadership skills
The Health Care Exploration for Aspiring Leaders (HEALs) program has officially welcomed its first cohort of students, marking a milestone in Belmont's commitment to shaping the next generation of health care professionals through interdisciplinary exploration and leadership development.
Seven undergraduate students — Kermina Shalaby, Brooklynn Crane, Harper Behmer, Steven Saad, Andrew Littleton, Sierra Moon and Symone Hodges — have been selected for the program, which offers conditional admission to Belmont's graduate programs in medicine, pharmacy, physical therapy and occupational therapy while emphasizing collaborative health care education.
"I was incredibly excited about all of the enthusiasm that the students had in planning their events for the upcoming semester and year," said Dr. Beth Bowman, assistant dean for the College of Science and Mathematics and director of pre-health advising. "It is clear that these students want to make an impact on their community, both by their intentionality for giving to their communities, but also by providing opportunities for all pre-health students to contribute as well."
Breaking Down Silos in Health Care Education
The program launched after months of collaborative planning between Belmont's health science departments — the Thomas F. Frist, Jr. College of Medicine, and the colleges of Sciences and Mathematics and Pharmacy and Health Sciences. HEALs addresses a critical need in health care education: ensuring students understand the interconnected nature of health care professions before specializing.
"Medicine is not practiced in isolation. It is a team effort," said Symone Hodges, a biology major exploring the medicine pathway. "Being a physician is such a collaborative effort, so stepping into the world of other fields closely related to my profession gives me a great appreciation for their work, a better understanding of my role for my future patients and knowledge as to how we as a team should be collaborating to ultimately provide the most holistic care."
This all-encompassing approach reflects the reality of today's health care landscape, where patient outcomes increasingly depend on seamless collaboration between specialists across multiple disciplines.
"Strong leadership in health care requires more than clinical knowledge," Hodges added. " I cannot articulate enough how vital it is to understand the nuance of OT, PT, pharmacy and medicine."
During their orientation meeting, the students immediately demonstrated the leadership focus of the program by collaborating to plan two major initiatives for the upcoming year: a community service activity bringing together the broader pre-health community and a cultural awareness seminar series designed to help students understand diverse perspectives in health care.
"Since this is the inaugural year of HEALs, part of the experience is building up the program and figuring everything out as we go," said Sierra Moon, a biology major interested in medicine. "I am looking forward to building close bonds with the other pre-health students and learning about their stories and perspectives."
Personal Journeys Shape Professional Paths
The program's emphasis on career exploration resonates strongly with students who appreciate the opportunity to understand the full breadth of health care pathways before committing to a specialty.
"I am really intrigued by the interdisciplinary case studies we will take part in this semester," shared Andrew Littleton, who is exploring pharmacy. "We will collaborate with graduate students from nursing, medicine, physical therapy and others."
For many students, personal experiences drew them to the HEALs program. Kermina Shalaby's interest in medicine began at 14 when she was hospitalized with a potential brain tumor diagnosis.
"Being in the hospital, I was able to see firsthand how health care professionals worked together, not only to solve a complex medical question, but also to make their patients feel safe, understood and cared for during an incredibly scary time," she said. "That is what made me truly fall in love with medicine."
Harper Behmer, an honors student who will be studying abroad this semester but plans to stay connected with the cohort virtually, found confirmation of her medical aspirations through hands-on experience.
"As a Neuro-Therapy technician this past summer, I applied the in-depth knowledge from my classes to a clinical setting and felt ecstatic about the field," Behmer said. "That was the moment that not only confirmed my wishes for the future but also made me excited about all the new possibilities within medicine."
More Than Conditional Admission
The conditional admission component, while valuable, isn't the sole draw for these high-achieving students. Several emphasized that the program's focus on leadership development and interdisciplinary understanding motivated their applications, while others mentioned that it will allow them to lean in to all that college has to offer.
"This acceptance has definitely relieved some of the stress of the application process, and it will allow me to more fully enjoy the experience of college," Moon said. "Belmont is full of opportunities that I am excited to pursue, including medical brigades, supporting foster families and study abroad programs. I, of course, aim to excel academically to the best of my ability, but it has relieved some of the pressure and allowed me to focus more of my time on helping communities and experiencing other opportunities."
Bowman emphasized that HEALs formalizes Belmont's career exploration focus for early-stage students while providing the University's only pathway program into the Frist College of Medicine and an alternative option to accelerated pathway programs for occupational therapy, physical therapy and pharmacy.
"We think that no matter if a student knows their long-term goals or not, they should take the time to better understand the health care landscape," Bowman said. "Traditional four-year students can still have a strong relationship with our graduate program admissions teams, even if they don't go through an accelerated path."
Building Tomorrow's Health Care Leaders
As the program moves forward, students will participate in the pre-health certificate program, careers panels and peer mentoring. The goal is to ensure students make informed decisions about their careers while developing the leadership skills necessary for success in any health care field.
"HEALs has given me the opportunity to develop foundational leadership skills that I will use throughout my career, as this is an important quality in a good physician,” Moon emphasized. “This acceptance has been a tremendous blessing and opportunity that will have a far-reaching impact on my future in health care."
Learn more about pathways at Belmont