Chapter Spotlight: Jefferson High School HOSA Teddy Bear Clinic

At Jefferson High School, for the past two years, we have done something called the Teddy Bear Clinic. The Teddy Bear Clinic is a fun, and engaging way to teach elementary students about healthcare by allowing them to be their teddy bear’s doctor. There are multiple stations set up around the gym, and we set a timer for 5 minutes allowing students to rotate through each station. Popular stations like the X-Ray station allowed students to “see” their teddy bear’s X-Ray, and apply bandages to their injury. Another popular station was the hand washing station, where after squirting some soap onto their hands, students got to put their hands into a box and when blue light shined on them revealed the germs on their hands. But, after washing their hands, they noticed that the blue light did not show their hands glowing anymore, showing the importance of proper hygiene. The teddy bear clinic not only allows a fun activity for students to do, and promotes education by displaying multiple important steps to remain healthy. It allowed community members such as local physicians, hospitals, health departments, pharmacies, and our school athletic trainers to promote their areas of work. It is not only a simple, but engaging way to show students truly how fun and important health is. This event is proof that learning about healthcare can be just as fun as it is important and it’s a fantastic way to keep your HOSA chapter thriving!