On Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, Blessing-Rieman College of Nursing hosted its 34th annual Teddy Bear clinic. This clinic is held once in the fall semester and once in the spring semester for the community. 

The theme for this year was Encanto, a film released by Disney in 2021, as various nurses dressed up as characters from the film. 

The goal of this clinic was to teach parents as well as their children about numerous health topics such as nutrition, dental hygiene, proper hand washing techniques, exercise importance and more. 

Nurses say habits are developed in early childhood, so if children can learn now, they are better prepared for their healthy future. 

There were many booths at this clinic that piqued the interest of the younger population. Each of these booths had an end goal of educating the kids, while still being fun at the same time. 

Elizabeth Talley is a senior nursing student at Quincy University and BRCN, she played a huge part in the Teddy Bear clinic this year. As an assignment, Talley built an obstacle course, to teach the youth about physical activity and exercise while still making things fun for the kids.

“I loved participating in this clinic. Things like that are right up my alley. I enjoyed participating this year because I got to see a different side of health care education that incorporates the ideas and understanding for the younger generation. When kids learn they are going to understand it more in a fun environment and that’s exactly what we accomplished with TBC,” Talley said. 

“The clinic gives children the chance to learn about a clinic at their level. Some doctors may scare kids with all their equipment and fancy words. Some kids have a huge fear of shots and doing something like this helps to teach them how important it is to take care of themselves,” Stephanie Fleer said. 

BRCN is currently preparing for the school’s next big event in the spring, Family Fit Night. 

“As a volunteer, I enjoyed seeing the kids participate in educational activities while learning and having fun. When I participated in Family Fit Night, the event that is held in the spring semester that is similar to TBC I saw a different side to the education of healthy living for the kids,” Daniel Wojcik said. 

Over 100 families attended the BRCN Teddy Bear clinic to learn about health education. Parents and children go home with handouts with simple but valuable information. The college encourages more families to join them in better health education for the younger generation.