A parent’s-eye view of the Indigenous Student Work Experience Program at St. Boniface Hospital
Written by Tracy Laluk
As a parent, I thought I had a pretty good idea of what Zoey’s 17-week internship at St. Boniface Hospital would look like.
Maybe a few hospital tours. A lot of walking around the different program areas. Some polite nodding. You know, “observe and learn.”
What I didn’t expect was for her to be elbow-deep in real healthcare experiences, from open-heart surgery to maternity wards and pathology labs, these past 17 weeks went by so fast, and hearing staff & mentors talk to me about Zoey, let’s just say these peacock feathers were glowing today.
Thanks to a visionary partnership between River East Transcona School Division and St. Boniface Hospital, the Indigenous Student Work Experience Program (ISWEP) gives students the opportunity to explore healthcare careers up close.
The students participate in a 17 week internship, which was sparked by the wisdom and leadership of Knowledge Keeper Clayton Sandy. This is reconciliation in action, not just talk, but a meaningful, immersive experience that allows youth to explore, contribute, and see themselves in professional spaces.
And dream big, Zoey did.
She’s always said she wanted to be an engineer since she was eight. But now, thanks to this program, and one very exciting moment fixing a machine mid-surgery, she’s narrowed it down to biomedical engineering…. She thinks!
Here’s just a sample of her “typical” days in the program:
Scrubbing into multiple heart surgeries, casually describing watching ribs being opened like she witnessed this daily!
Holding a human brain in pathology.
Extracting cells from a rat in the research lab.
Working alongside nurses in radiology, learning how imaging actually works.
And, of course, fainting during a C-section, but she proudly notes she lasted longer than the nurse practicum students. HUGE Win!
On one memorable Tuesday, she found herself in the maternity ward, and let’s just say, it was not her calling. Her exact words?
“Too many naked people, Mom. I was counting ceiling tiles and watching the clock.”
She saw:
A teen mom whose own mother was criticizing the nursing staff (“I could do a better job!”). – this gave Zoey a new perspective on how hard nurses work.
A case involving chlamydia passed during childbirth. – Mom do you know if they hadn’t caught this, the baby could have been born blind.
A baby born with jaundice having blood drawn from their tiny foot – Mom, they had to take so much!
She also learned how to place a Foley catheter for someone experiencing a postpartum hemorrhage.
Zoey: “It’s called PPH, Mom.”
Me: Googles it while pretending I totally knew.
That same day, though, she had an incredible mentor, a nurse who took the time to explain, teach, and empower her. – mom, she was amazing.
To balance the emotional weight of it all:
She was complimented on her sneakers (another huge win), found a really good pen (already purchased from Amazon), and declared with dramatic flair: “Nurse? Zero percent. Just no. Never again.”
She was in three surgeries, two pacemakers and a valve repair, and helped troubleshoot a machine mid-procedure. I thought when Zoey first talked about these, that she watched from the observation window, you know the kind that you see on TV. I had no idea, she actually was able to scrub in… All this by week 6….!
One of the lead staff was so impressed she handed Zoey her LinkedIn information and said, “Call me when you graduate.” – Like, what?!!
Each week, she returned with stories that made us laugh, ask questions, wince, and rethink what’s possible. And every Tuesday, with each new story, I was still surprised by what this program is letting these students do. Kudos to everyone who planned this amazing program for our children to experience.
And yet, when I questioned it, Zoey shrugs:
Mom. It’s a teaching hospital…
Me: For medical students…
Zoey: Eye roll intensifies…
There were even offers to spend the day in the morgue, but she politely declined – I have my limits, Mom.
This program isn’t just about giving students career exposure. It’s about giving them access. It’s about giving them the support of mentors, the space to see what’s possible, and the freedom to decide what is and isn’t for them.
She’s not just dreaming anymore. She’s planning. She’s asking smart questions. She’s making connections. She’s figuring out who she wants to be, and what systems she wants to help improve.
This is only the second term of the program. The first cohort finished in January. Zoey knows she’s lucky to be part of the second and we know she’ll carry this experience with her long after today.
To Clayton Sandy, Joseph Thompson, the incredible program mentors who created and supported this program, the River East Transcona School Division, St. Boniface Hospital teams, funding from Réseau Compassion Network, and the healthcare staff who’ve welcomed these students with open arms each week — Miigwech.
You’ve sparked something powerful.
You’ve given our kids not just knowledge, but confidence, identity, and direction.
And at least one excellent pen!