The UK Otolaryngology team participated in the Teddy Bear Hospital, an event in collaboration between the UK Children's Hospital and the Living Arts and Science Center. Children from the community were encouraged to bring a teddy bear to the event, and several of our attendings and residents worked at the event to help encourage interest in the sciences and help with children's fear of hospital spaces.
From Dr. Nikita Gupta, who was one of the participating doctors at the event:
"Our goal with this outreach program is to invite kids to imagine themselves becoming doctors so that we can encourage them early on. We want to reach out to kids all over the county and beyond to teach them about future careers in medicine and help them imagine how much they can accomplish in the future. This is the beginning of an ongoing partnership with LASC and will include exhibits that will be there throughout the year as well as included in future school outreach.
Marian Wright Edelman has a famous quote - "You cannot be what you cannot see". Billie Jean King has a take on it - "You have to see it to be it" With this partnership we want them to "be it to be it" - act out being a doctor for a day so that we can spark interest in the next generation of physicians. I can't wait to see how many of them will join future medical school classes in the 2040s! "
This was a fantastic event, and we look forward to more events in the future!