Jocey Terwoord was working as a summer student in the zinc smelter at Teck's Trail Operations when she received an email from University of British Columbia's Island Medical Program. On summer break working as a plant operator and fresh from graduating Selkirk College's three-year Rural Pre-Medicine Program, Terwoord opened the letter to find out she was accepted into medical school.
An outstanding accomplishment, Terwoord bottled her excitement and waited until clocking out at the end of her shift to let it fully sink in. On the drive home to Salmo, Terwoord couldn't wait to share with her parents that she would be off to Victoria.
"I distinctly remember driving home from work, my mom and dad were outside doing yard work," Terwoord explains. "They had no idea that the news was coming out that week and when I told them, they were so surprised and utterly thrilled. It was such a happy moment."
The daughter of a crane operator dad and social worker mom, Terwoord grew up in Salmo where she embraced outdoor activities and appreciated all that a tight-knit community provided. Terwoord always knew she wanted a career in health care, but was unsure of her exact direction after graduating from high school. Though her post-secondary options were many, Terwoord chose to stay close to home and attend Selkirk College while she figured it out.
"What made me realize that I could do this was the support from my family and friends saying: Why can't you do this? I was a bit more of a pessimist, it seemed very difficult to get into medical school," the 25-year-old says. "Then came the support of the RPM Program with helping us set up ways to volunteer and to succeed in academics and a focus on taking the admissions test those things are massive and very difficult to do independently."
Community Support Powers Motivation
Academic ability and inner drive are essential building blocks of entry into medical school, but at Selkirk College the journey extends beyond the individual and into the community. Access to scholarships and bursaries provide vital financial assistance across all post-secondary programs.
After starting in the Rural Pre-Medicine Program in 2017, Jocey Terwoord is in the final stages of her training to become a rural physician. Seen here (right) with RPM peers who received scholarships in 2018, she is grateful for the financial support that helped her achieve her educational goals.
To help offset the cost of a journey that can take a minimum of seven years of school for those pursuing the ultimate goal of becoming a physician, the Selkirk College Foundation is focused on its Steps to Success campaign that aims to raise $150,000 towards student awards. Spurred by a generous individual donation of $50,000 to kick-start the campaign, the college is appealing to the wider community to help reach the campaign's goal.
"The RPM Program is an innovate approach focused on helping the overall health care needs of rural British Columbians and it's working," says Andrew Jupp, the college's manager of advancement and alumni relations. "Given the educational task facing students in this program, we know that generosity from the community through financial awards is imperative if we want to see the outcomes in our health care system. By donating to this campaign, it leaves a legacy that will be felt across the health care sector for many years to come because our students are the future frontline professionals."
Students in the first RPM Program cohort began studies on the Castlegar Campus in 2014. Over the last decade, 86 learners have completed the three-year program and 20 of those students have gone onto medical school. Beyond helping educate future doctors, program alumni have forged pathways leading to careers in pharmacy, optometry, dentistry, physical therapy, midwifery, veterinary medicine and public health.
Living at home during the early steps of her academics allowed Terwoord to work part-time while attending school, reducing the cost of her undergraduate education. To further set Terwoord up for the substantial financial commitment required for medical school, scholarships and bursaries were instrumental in fueling the path forward.
"It would have been so much harder, I'm not sure if I would be sitting here today without the generosity of donors," she says. "If I didn't receive the financial awards at Selkirk College, I don't know if my path would have been possible. It makes a difference in taking the stress off the school aspect, but also helps frees up time for volunteer and other activities outside of academics which are a huge requirement for medical school admission."
Back to Rural BC Roots
At the end of November, Terwoord completed a four-week emergency room placement at Kootenay Lake Hospital. One of the final steps of the formal education process in the four-year medical program, it solidified her commitment to rural health care.
"It's pretty cool to be working in an area that I grew up in," she says. "Because I grew up here, I ran into people that I know from the community. It causes a surprise I am surprised that I'm here at this step in my education and they are surprised that time has gone by so fast that I could be in this role."
In the new year, the Canadian Resident Matching System will place Terwoord into a two-year residency where she has requested rural family practice. A major personal milestone, Terwoord will stop paying tuition and benefit from a salary as she begins her career as a physician. It's the final step in a journey that is proof that support for an innovative program for rural health care is working.
"If a career in health care is what you want to do and you grew up in a rural area, Selkirk College has the program and support that students should consider," Terwoord says when asked what advice she would provide those considering a similar direction. "The support you receive is amazing and it helps enable you to achieve your goals."
And for Terwoord, her successful pathway into medicine is going to lead back home to where it started in the West Kootenay.
Learn more about how to contribute to the Steps to Success Campaign.
