Baton Rouge General makes healthcare education fun with ‘Teddy Bear Clinic’

BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) – This week, Baton Rouge General Hospital created a unique department for Teddy Bear specialists, and it brought lots of smiles to young faces.

Wednesday was an exciting day for Park Medical Academy’s Pre-K through first-grade students. The children went to BRG’s Mid City location to visit the hospital’s Teddy Bear Clinic. There, the little ones learned important facts about health and wellness.

Each child was given a bear to treat as a patient. BRG staff walked the mini doctors-in-training through the processes of bandaging the stuffed animals, taking their vital signs, having them X-rayed, and diagnosing them.

During the clinic, students also learned other important health and wellness tips like movement exercises, nutrition, and handwashing.

It was a day of education and fun for the students, especially as they provided their patients with “prescriptions” for get-well hugs.

Educators at Park Medical Academy place great emphasis on establishing foundations in math and science at an early age. Their aim is to prepare students for careers in medicine, healthcare, and other STEM-based fields.

The academy was created in January 2022, thanks to a collaboration with BRG. It is the East Baton Rouge Parish School System’s first medical Focus Choice school.