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Programme launched targeting 16-year-olds to become GPs

A new programme to help school students understand what ‘life is like as a GP’ has been launched in Cumbria.

Cumbria Health on Call (CHoC), a limited healthcare company offering in- and out-of-hours primary care services in Cumbria, has decided to launch a two-day GP programme.

A specialist training division from CHoC will explain to year 12 and 13 pupils (aged between 16 and 18 years old) the process of applying for medical school.

Pupils will also have a chance to try out life-like situations. A series of workshops will feature: doctor’s bag, how to tackle an emergency situation, or visit a patient in the community.

On the second day of training, students will be able to join a ChoC clinician for a shift.

Together with the help of GPs, clinical and non-clinical staffs, CHoC aims at giving students an informed idea of life as a GP and of the academic steps they will have to take to pursue a career in this field.

Executive director of operations at CHoC Hannah Mason said: ‘As a social enterprise, we are committed to investing in our local community.

‘Helping year 12 and 13 students to understand what life is like as a GP will hopefully mean they will choose to come back to Cumbria as qualified GPs in the future.’