CAMDEN — By BRADLY GILL
Staff writer
Camden Fairview High School now offers a Project Lead the Way (PLTW) Biomedical Science pathway to students, according to a news release from Camden Fairview High School.
“PLTW Biomedical Science is a four year program that allows students to investigate the roles of dozens of healthcare professions,” the release states.
“Students engage in activities such as investigating the death of a fictional person to learn content in the context of real-world cases. By examining the structures and interactions of human body systems, students are able to explore the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease such as fighting cancer with nano-technology. The program uses a combination of activities, projects, and problem-based teaching to engage students as they learn to solve problems.
“Students in the PLTW Biomedical Science program at Camden Fairview High School work with some of the same tools and technology used by professionals in hospitals and labs.
In March of 2018, Camden Fairview High School purchased a Table Alpha device manufactured by Anatomage, a medical imaging company in San Jose, California”
The device will be used by Hannah O’Dell’s PLTW Biomedical Science classes.
“The Table Alpha allows for exploration and learning of human anatomy beyond what any cadaver (deceased body donated to science) could offer and Camden Fairview is proud to be the only school in the state of Arkansas to provide such advanced technology for students,” the news release states.
“The Table Alpha is the only fully segmented real human 3D anatomy system currently known to exist. It features unparalleled accuracy with data from real human and animal scans.
“Using a touch screen and 3D visualization software, high school students can virtually dissect cadavers layer-by-layer or structure-by-structure.
“Table Alpha comes with both full body male and female anatomy images at 0.4mm to 0.1mm high resolution, allowing for the viewing of structures such as small nerves or blood vessels that are difficult to see by any other means.
The images are from non-chemically treated cadavers with color and shape preserved. Also, with over a dozen animal scans included in Table Alpha, students can dissect and explore animal cases.
“Over 2,300 anatomical structures are fully annotated for both male and female cadavers. Unlike with traditional cadavers, a mistake in the dissection process using the Anatomage table can be undone easily.
“With their fingers, students can rotate the virtual body and make incisions in any direction. Students can also scroll through the plane of the cut and see the details of the internal structures or cut again to further explore the anatomy. CFHS Biomedical Science students have the opportunity to explore what various wounds look like internally as well as externally.
“Students may study every human body system simultaneously or may isolate systems to view individually. One especially engaging feature of the Table Alpha is the ability to see diseased or damaged structures in addition to healthy structures.
“For example, students can compare the lungs of both a healthy individual and individual affected by cystic fibrosis.”
Regarding the use of the biomed Table Alpha device, O’Dell said:
“It’s geared towards kids who are interested in health care professions. It could be anything from certified nursing assistant all the way to pharmacy school. The program is a four year program and kids start as freshmen and then they progress. They take EOC at the end of the year. It’s like anatomy and biology combined with a little bit of forensic science mixed in.”