Tom Parry
PUPILS at Araluen Primary School got to be doctors and nurses on Friday, May 5 as they created their own Teddy Bear Hospital.
The event coincided with a visit from second-year medical students from Monash University as part of a one-week placement in Gippsland.
According to teacher Emily Stone, it was the Monash students who contacted the school asking to make a visit.
“We’ve had them here in the past… pre-Covid, but they contacted us and they asked if they could come back, which was very nice,” Mrs Stone said.
“It gives (pupils) an opportunity to learn about the things outside of the school, especially things like hospitals and doctors, which can be really scary for little kids.”
As part of the event, pupils in the school’s junior unit rotated between eight “stations” that explored healthy eating habits and the work associated with health professionals.
Such stations included Surgery Station, where pupils learned about different organs inside the body; Asthma Station, which taught how to help others with breathing difficulties; and Plastering Station, where children were invited to make a cast of their fingers.
Photo: Tom Parry
Natania D’Sa is a third-year medical student at Monash, and the Rural Events Coordinator for Gippsland.
Ms D’Sa said the Monash students “love working with the kids”.
“Teddy Bear Hospital is all about engaging the kids within our community, and we’re especially excited to be able to do that within a rural community,” Ms D’Sa said.
“We’re all about reducing that White Coat Anxiety a lot of kids can have about going to the doctor.
“We’re encouraging healthy eating and behaviour, but also the importance of having fun and relying on each other as a community to stay safe and to stay healthy.
“Overall, our main goal is just to show the kids that there’s nothing to be afraid of when you go to the doctor, and there’s nothing to be intimidated by when it comes to healthy living.”
Joining Ms D’Sa and her fellow students was the Teddy Bear Hospital’s mascot, Big Ted, who was warmly received by the children and received many hugs on the day.
Monash University’s Year 2 Rural Placement Program aims to increase students’ understanding and knowledge of rural and regional health systems, and the patients embedded within these systems and communities.
For some participants, it was their first exposure to life and health service delivery within a regional setting.
