Collins Career Center’s Diagnostic Sonography program is offering free OB scans every Tuesday and Thursday.

The free scans provide the community with a valuable service and the students with invaluable experience, said Tracie Runyon the head of the diagnostic sonography program at Collins.

“It’s great for everyone involved” she said. “These women come in and they get a chance to take home pictures of their babies and our students get a wonderful hands-on education.”

The hands-on nature of the program at Collins is a major pitch to its students, one that is paying off, according to Cassandra Eikey, a student of the program in her second semester.

“When you can take what the book is saying and put it with the actual action of doing it, then everything really comes together,” Eikey said. “We get very specific training here. The four-year schools have a broad spectrum of things they teach but we have a very focused curriculum that prepares you well for the job market.”

The free scans also afford the students the chance to get used to working with different body types and personalities.

“Every person has a different body and each one provides a unique challenge in trying to get the best quality scan possible,” Eikey said. “We have a simulator but it’s the same every time, and doesn’t have a personality so you can’t learn people skills with it.”

The teacher-to-student ratio at Collins is also smaller than many other schools offering the same program allowing students to get crucial one-on-one time with instructors.

“The smaller feel of the classes was really impactful in me choosing to attend here,” said Megan Jenkins, a first-year student. “We get a lot of one on one time that other students don’t get, so it’s easy to ask questions and get explanations.”

The patients who come in for the scans appreciate the service Collins Career Center offers and say it has benefits that going to the doctor doesn’t have.

“Obviously it’s free, which is great” said Nikki Esteep a mother-to-be who was at Collins to get an OB scan. “But you also get a lot more pictures than you get at the doctor because they aren’t as busy here, so they take more time with you.”

Esteep, who was having her third scan, also said that the students are doing a job on par with their professional counterparts, and that the scans provide her with peace of mind.

“This is my third scan here,” she said. “These students do as good of a job as the pros. I came in here today because I was nervous. I hadn’t felt my baby move, but they did the scan and I could see the baby and it put me at ease.”

For more information or to set up an appointment you can visit www.collins-cc.edu.