Mr. Sherwood Fuellas is a science teacher at Armijo, but he is also the adviser of The Future Medical Professionals Club. “The club is for those interested in either going into or even just have an interest in the medical field,” said Mr. Fuellas.

As an academic club, they support the opportunity to learn more about specific fields of study in the medical profession. Club officers and other members take turns giving presentations.

Mr. Fuellas knows of several graduates have made it into undergraduate school in the last couple of years, “but I have only been the advisor for a few years so none that made it to residency that I know of,” he said. “I make myself available [to help the students], but I find that members of this club are pretty self-reliant and ask for minimal support. They do achieve a lot and most are in IB programs.”

One of Mr. Fuellas’ favorite things about the club is how driven and dedicated the students are to their goals, knowing that some may eventually become doctors. “Physicians were among the top recruited the last few years in its occupation but now is a perfect example of how any field can never truly meet the demands during such extreme circumstances,” he said. “The future of healthcare is determined by the needs of the practice. In general there are not enough graduates to fulfill projected positions in the future.”

Those who are considering a career in the field should know where their passions lie. “Study it out and do some investigating,” Mr. Fuellas said. “This is a good place to start. Again, I was only recently approached by a former member from last year so we are not up and running yet but if there are any that are interested let me know.

While knowledge of health is the focus of the club, no discussion of health care would be complete without a reference to insurance, and Mr. Fuellas understands that as well. “A single payer system means government controlled reimbursement rates. It’s a mystery as to how this would play out but at an average cost of $200,000.00 for tuition costs for medical school; if physician’s salaries plummet there will be a decrease of interest in the field. All members of society would be covered under this plan but as a society this takes away free enterprise in the marketplace. I do think that it plays a role but if being a physician is what you want to be as an occupation it needs to be independent of that view,” he said.