This year, PMHS is living up to the motto ‘new year new me’. With the new year, the school is providing new courses for students to explore.
Principles of BioMedical Science is a program that started at the beginning of this school year. Melanie Magdalinos has the privilege of being able to teach this new course.
¨BioMed is a program from Project Lead the Way and it is designed to help students get an understanding of what is involved in healthcare,¨ Magdalinos said.
The class allows students to walk through different jobs in the medical field. From forensics and biomedical engineering to playing the role of a doctor. BioMed lets students experience labs and use different types of medical equipment. ¨It is a hands-on class. Last semester we dissected hearts. We tested blood. We did a lot of different things,” junior Keily Zapata said.
While Magdalinos is in charge of steering the class in the right direction, a good portion of their learning is student-led. Students are taught the essential information of each field in order to complete a lab or experiment on their own. ¨So far they are very engaged and very curious, they ask a lot of good questions,¨ Magdalinos said.

While the curriculum may not be as intense as other classes, it is a different kind of challenge and the workload piles on students at times. ¨I will say the notes and getting all of the material is easy, but remembering and how to study is harder,¨ junior Kendall Brookbank said.
There are no required prerequisite courses before taking the BioMed class, even incoming freshmen are allowed to enroll in the course.
BioMed is leading into a new year-long course that the school is providing this upcoming school year. Medical Intervention provides a basic understanding of how to diagnose and treat patients in a hospital setting. While students will not get to travel to a hospital, the hospital will come to them. “You’re going to learn about infections, what causes them and how we treat them,” Magdalinos said.
Much like Biomed, this course will be hands-on for students. Students will learn how to use medical equipment and be able to practice with the instruments.
While this class serves a multitude of different purposes these courses are provided for those who are enticed in pursuing the medical field. “Anyone that is interested in the health field–the human side or the animal side–the principles work for both,” Magdalinos said.