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Providence Swedish and Seattle Storm team up to inspire teens on health-care career path

Published Date
Author Swedish Community Relations Team

Swedish and the WNBA's Seattle Storm hosted Rainier Scholars, a local program supporting youth from underserved communities, at a February Storm Academy event. Students took part in activities centered on health-care careers, including panel discussions with Swedish caregivers and clinicians and more.

More than 40 middle and high school students from Rainier Scholars spent a day at Swedish Cherry Hill on Feb. 10 to learn about careers in health care and even be a sports medicine doctor for a day.

Providence Swedish hosted the event in partnership with the WNBA Seattle Storm as part of its Storm Academy, the team's community and social impact program to inspire girls and women in the Puget Sound. 

During the event, Providence Swedish and the Storm donated $30,000 to support the Rainier Scholars, which helps inspire and train middle and high school students prepare for and succeed in college and beyond.


At a Feb. 10 event at Swedish's Cherry Hill campus, representatives from the Seattle Storm and Providence Swedish presented a check for $30,000.00 to Ranier Scholars, an organization that helps young people from underrepresented communities achieve a college degree. 

Students who are part of Rainier Scholars include those who have the greatest number of barriers to achieving a college degree. This includes multi-generational African American, African immigrant, Hispanic/Latinx, first-generation Asian, Pacific Islander and Native American students.

Panel discussions and activities

Seattle Storm forward and 2023 Rookie League All-Star Jordan Horston participated in a panel discussion on mental health and wellness, and engaged with students during games and competition relays. 

Other panel discussions, hosted by doctors, nurses and caregivers, touched on clinical and non-clinical roles in health care. Students also heard from members of our Black Caregiver Resource Group and the Latinx: Heritage of Latin America.

The students also did a sports medicine simulation activities with staff from Swedish Rehabilitation and Performance Medicine, including: 

  • "Testing my Body" with Steven Stanos, M.D., and Irene Young, M.D., who demonstrated nerve innervations using spinal models and allowed students to test reflexes using reflex hammers. Students also completed a mini-physical similar to those done by our professional athletes prior to the start of each season. 
  • "I Hit My Head" with Heather Galgon, M.D., and Carol Chang, M.D., who discussed common causes of concussions, signs and symptoms to look for, and conducted tests on strength, balance and coordination. 
  • "Imaging" with Alex Lloyd, M.D., who educated students on imaging techniques for common injuries using an ultrasound machine. Each student practiced using the ultrasound machine on peers, identifying bones, tendons, ligaments and muscles. 
  • "Why My Back Hurts" with Will Anderson, M.D., and Dr. Hisashi Kobayashi focused on back injuries such as a disc herniation and spinal stenosis and the use of use MRI and X-ray images in diagnosing back pain and injuries. Dr. Anderson and Dr. Kobayashi demonstrated the use of a needle commonly used for injections to treat back pain. 

Learn more about Rainier Scholars and Providence Swedish's partnership with the Seattle Storm.

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About Providence Swedish

Providence Swedish has served the Puget Sound region since the first Providence hospital opened in Seattle in 1877 and the first Swedish hospital opened in 1910. The two organizations affiliated in 2012 and today comprise the largest health care delivery system in Western Washington, with 22,000 caregivers, eight hospitals and 244 clinics. A not-for-profit family of organizations, Providence Swedish provides more than $406 million in community benefit in the Puget Sound Region each year. The health system offers a comprehensive range of services and specialty and subspecialty care in a number of clinical areas, including cancer, cardiovascular health, neurosciences, orthopedics, digestive health and women’s and children’s care. 

About the Author

We don't seek to just be your care partner. We want to be your health partner. The Swedish Community Relations Team is focused on addressing big issues such as mental health and addiction, homelessness, diabetes and the general well-being of communities across Puget Sound.

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