HURON — Huron Regional Medical Center (HRMC) recently welcomed Rural Experiences for Health Professions Students (REHPS), Jasmine Salcido-Santos and Ellie Gubbrud to experience a rural clinical rotation at their organization.  HRMC has been a rotation site for seven years. 

Salcido-Santos is from Mitchell and will begin her fourth and final year of the registered nursing program at Dakota Wesleyan University this fall. Gubbrud is from St. Paul, Minnesota and recently completed her first year of medical school at the Sanford USD School of Medicine in Vermillion.

While in Huron, Gubbrud and Salcido-Santos had the opportunity to work in various areas of the hospital including physical therapy, primary care, wound care, surgery, inpatient care, radiology and more. The students expressed appreciation for additional experiences outside of their core study areas.

“It was very cool to experience so many different areas of care and see the interaction between patients and caregivers in rural medicine,” explained Gubbrud.

Salcido-Santos added, “This has been a great experience for us. The staff, providers and everyone in the community has been welcoming.”

In addition to experiences in the hospital, the students participated in Safety City, which is a safety training program in Huron, held each summer for 4-5 year old children.

Gubbrud and Salcido-Santos provided sun safety education to the children during the last week of their rotation.

Huron is one of 16 South Dakota communities, with populations under 14,000, selected to participate in Rural Experiences for Health Professions Students (REHPS).

The program is designed to bring health professions graduates, who are selected through a competitive process, to rural South Dakota for rewarding careers.

The 2024 REHPS communities are: Canton, Chamberlain, Deadwood, Dell Rapids, Flandreau, Huron, Miller, Parkston, Redfield, Scotland, Sturgis, Tyndall, Vermillion, Viborg, Wagner, Webster, and Winner.

The REHPS program connects interprofessional groups of students enrolled in clinical psychology, family nurse practitioner, medical, medical laboratory science, occupational therapy, pharmacy, physical therapy, physician assistant, and registered nursing programs from Dakota Wesleyan University, South Dakota State University and University of South Dakota.

“The REHPS program provides insight into how rewarding a career in rural medicine can be,” said Melissa Ettswold, REHPS Program Director. “HRMC provides an excellent variety of experiences for our students.”

REHPS receives funding from the Office of Rural Health/South Dakota Department of Health and is managed by the Southeast South Dakota Area Health Education Center.