Sixty-two Stetson University Integrative Health Science students visited and studied at the anatomy lab at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine in Orlando this past school year, led by Stetson IHS Lab Coordinator and Instructor Guenevere Rae.

Stetson students followed along with the UCF medical students using the same textbook and had an opportunity to interact with medical students, medical education faculty and medical doctors. Five of the participating Stetson students attended every single lab, including those they didn’t get credit for attending. Several also helped teach other students anatomy when they visited the lab.

Stetson students had an opportunity to learn using cadavers, an experience described as extremely valuable as they prepare for careers as doctors, nurses and other health professions.

“For an instructor who relies on virtual dissection and artistic renditions as my main educational resources, I found it personally rewarding to have the opportunity to teach through the use of cadaveric dissection,” Rae said in a letter of appreciation to UCF Anatomy Professor Andrew Payer.

“I had the opportunity to walk students through blood flow of the heart using real hearts, instead of plastic models for the first time,” Rae said. “Students searched for anatomical differences between specimen, and enjoyed being able to identify structures that they had only previously seen in books.”

With permission from UCF College of Medicine, this is a story the College of Medicine posted to its website:

Partnership Hat for Dr. Payer

Partnership wears many hats at the University of Central Florida, and recently, that community interaction hat was an authentic Stetson.

Guenevere Rae, Health Sciences Laboratory Coordinator for Stetson University, presented the hat to Anatomy Professor Andrew Payer in appreciation for the opportunity he provided Stetson health students to learn at the College of Medicine’s Anatomy Lab.

Stetson is known as the Hatters, so Ms. Rae honored Dr. Payer with an authentic hat. She says that while books, models and virtual cadavers provide some educational value, a student’s ability to study the body in three dimensions is invaluable. “They get to see how unbelievably unique our bodies are,” she said.

Dr. Payer was most impressed with the enthusiasm, professionalism and commitment to learn exhibited by the Stetson undergraduates. “I am confident these students will make us proud some day in the health professions they chose for their eventual careers,” he said.

See the story and additional photos online on the UCF COM website.