where it all started

Medi-Futures is a free virtual shadowing program that consists of 40+ presentations each semester from a wide-array of healthcare professionals (physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, nurses, dentists, pharmacists, physical, occupational, and speech therapists, social workers, etc.), intending to expose students to a wide variety of careers while also providing sessions dedicated on how to approach the professional school application process.

The Medi-Gators Virtual Shadowing Program, a branch of Medi-Futures, was created by Dr. Pouya Ameli and Alyson Moriarty at the University of Florida in August of 2020. After two and a half years of a successful program at the University of Florida, the Medi-Gators team is expanding the program to provide accessible shadowing for students at various institutions across the State of Florida.

Previously, finding a meaningful shadowing experience often required knowing the right people, making yourself available when your mentor was available, and having the necessary transportation, wardrobe, etc. to make a good impression. This naturally made it so that shadowing, and all the benefits that come with it, was not easily accessible by all.

The Medi-Futures team believes that all pre-health students deserve an opportunity to learn more about a career of interest, obtain guidance on how to effectively pursue a career, develop a relationship with a trusted mentor, and receive the many other potential benefits of shadowing. Our virtual shadowing format allows us to recruit the best mentors and give them an opportunity to relay their message to over a thousand students all at once. All sessions are recorded and available to students who work, have family obligations, or otherwise are unable to attend live. Medi-Futures enables students to shadow over 40 healthcare providers each semester – something that was simply not possible with traditional in-person shadowing.

For undecided students, rapid exposure to a broad range of careers can help to narrow down options to a few careers of interest. For students with defined career goals, exposure to the full breadth of healthcare professions provides an appreciation for the complexities of healthcare and how many professions play a role to provide excellent care to patients. Medi-Futures wants students to have a good idea of how multiple careers in healthcare may look before they spend significant time and effort pursuing one.

At the end of our program, a certificate is provided to students who meet the attendance and participation requirements.