Sophia Marquez held up a stethoscope to hear the heartbeat of her plush Grinch toy, listening for any irregularities.
The soft, furry green toy, modeled after the Christmas antihero, moved through a series of medical stations set up at Canyon Del Oro High School, including X-rays and bandaging. Sophia’s job was to make sure her Grinch was healthy.
“He sounds OK,” the preschooler said after listening for the plush toy’s vital signs.
High school students in Canyon Del Oro’s sports medicine and early childhood education programs conducted mock medical procedures for dozens of stuffed animals brought in by three- and four-year-olds. The teddy bear clinic on Tuesday, Jan. 27, marked the first of its kind at the school.
Maddox Gauthier, a 17-year-old junior, wore a white coat to resemble a medical professional. At his station, teddy bears received bandages after preschoolers described their plush companion’s injuries.
“Depending on the injury, we could do an arm wrap, head wrap, stomach wrap,” Gauthier said. “We tell them how they can prevent it in the future and what steps to take after the cast comes off.”
Gauthier said he plans to pursue teaching, and opportunities like the clinic help prepare him to work with young children.
“I like the kids that are a little more quiet, you know, getting to see them when they’re a little scared,” he said.
With the help of their stuffed animals, more reserved children can become comfortable being silly, he said.
“It’s a lot of fun to see the kids be happy,” Gauthier said.
Sports medicine teacher Stephen Whetherhult said the idea for the teddy bear clinic came from the children’s book The Reading Pig Goes to the Teddy Bear Clinic, written by Tucsonans Beth Francis and Nicholas Clement and illustrated by Judy Nostrant.
Clement formerly served as superintendent of the Flowing Wells School District. Francis is the health care and community service coordinator at Tucson Medical Center.
In the book, a pig named Read Daily visits a medical clinic and meets other stuffed animals children have brought along for comfort. The story introduces young readers to what they might experience during a doctor or hospital visit.
“Basically, the whole idea was to get the advanced kids used to working with littles, which was inspired by this book,” Whetherhult said. “But also to get the littles in the position of their parents when parents take their kids to the doctor.”
Preschoolers and their plush patients first checked in at a triage table to have temperatures taken and symptoms recorded. Riley Hussak, 17, stood ready with a thermometer while explaining to the younger students what an emergency room visit might look like.
The clinic reinforced for Hussak that she is on the right career path. She completed the school’s sports medicine program and is now a student intern. She has been accepted into the nursing program at Pima Community College.
“We’re doing it for the littles. We love them,” Whetherhult said. “But it’s also because we have these awesome advanced students who are going above and beyond. These kids are the reason the program’s a success.”
Whetherhult said this was the first teddy bear clinic at Canyon Del Oro High School, but he said he was optimistic.
“This is our first ever — or hopefully our first annual,” he said.
