When a high school student checks out a nursing demo station and says, “I had no idea that nursing had so many different types of areas to specialize in,” you know something is clicking.

That kind of lightbulb moment is exactly what Dr. Sean Maurice had in mind when he first founded the Healthcare Travelling Roadshow. Created to inspire rural and northern youth to consider careers in health, the initiative connects students in high school with post-secondary students from a wide range of health disciplines—through hands-on demos and lots of one-on-one conversations.

Organized by medical students and staff in the UBC Northern Medical Program (NMP) at UNBC, the Roadshow hits the highways every spring to visit rural schools, focused on its mission that is powered by its student presenter team.

“I’m always pleasantly surprised by the incredible healthcare students who come on our trips,” said Maurice, an assistant dean and faculty member with the NMP. “They bring so much energy and curiosity, and invariably have thoughtful and creative ways of sharing their passion for their career choice with the rural youth.”

This year’s Roadshows visited seven communities through two regional tours in northern B.C. during May, including the Peace region (Fort St. John, Dawson Creek, Tumbler Ridge) and the North Coast (Terrace,, Nass Valley, Kitimat, Lax Kw’alaams). A sister Roadshow, organized through the Southern Medical Program, visited Salmo, Creston and Lumby in the Kootenays.

Over the course of all the trips, post-secondary students shared their personal journeys and areas of study, including biomedical engineering, cardiology technology, dental hygiene, kinesiology, medicine, medical laboratory science, midwifery, nursing (LPN, psychiatric and RN), occupational therapy, radiography technology, respiratory therapy, and speech language pathology.

At North Peace Secondary School, the experience left a lasting impression. “The Healthcare Travelling Roadshow is an incredible opportunity for our students to see the world of healthcare up close,” said Brian Campbell, District Principal of Careers for School District 60. “By connecting with medical and health science students from across the province, our youth gain hands-on exposure to a wide range of caring careers—many of which are urgently needed in rural and northern communities.”

For UBC Master of Occupational Therapy – North student Lauren Cape, the Roadshow helped her reconnect with what inspired her to pursue the profession. 

"The interactions gave me confidence in my knowledge of occupational therapy and reminded me of my own passion for it,” she said. “I love interacting with youth... and in the middle of a busy practicum, it was a nice opportunity to put some more wind into my sails."

Dana Go, a student in UBC’s Master of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine program, said she was struck by the curiosity and enthusiasm of the students she met.

“A lot of them asked about lab work they’d seen on shows like CSI or Dexter,” she said. “They were surprised to learn that laboratory technologists are essential members of the healthcare team, playing a critical role in making diagnoses.”

The Roadshow was more than just an outreach experience for Go.  “It was unforgettable - not just because of the places we visited, but because of the people I shared it with,” she said. “Being part of such a uniquely diverse and passionate group made each moment feel purposeful and left me with a deeper, more personal understanding of the beauty and challenges of rural healthcare.”

Since its first pilot outreach in 2010, the initiative has connected with more than 16,500 students across 102 community visits in B.C. It is supported by the Northern Medical Programs Trust, Rural Education Action Plan, Interior Health, Northern Health, UNBC, and the UBC Faculty of Medicine.

For Dr. Sean Maurice, the Healthcare Travelling Roadshow represents a different kind of academic work - one that doesn’t always fit the usual mold. 

“Though it’s not the type of project that university faculty are typically expected to do—it doesn’t fit neatly into teaching, research, or service—I think it’s a perfect example of ‘the scholarship of application,’” he said. “It’s not about creating new knowledge, but about doing what research tells us we need to do to help build our rural health workforce.”