Children at Danville Elementary School recently explored a variety of health care careers during an event organized by Knox Community Hospital and the Knox County Career Center. The daylong expo aimed to introduce students from kindergarten through sixth grade to the many roles within the health care sector, beyond just doctors and nurses.
"Our purpose today is to educate children about the many health care positions beyond doctors and nurses," stated Carmen Yarman, a KCH employment specialist. "We have several stations set up here in the gym and in other rooms where children have hands-on learning."
Students were divided into groups based on their grades for participation. Younger students from kindergarten to second grade, followed by third to fifth graders, took part in various activities. Sixth-graders had a separate session that provided them with more detailed information.
The expo featured stations covering topics such as phlebotomy, radiology, pharmacy, and physical therapy. In one activity related to pharmacy, children used colored beads and actual pharmacy pill counters to simulate filling prescriptions. They also learned how to take blood pressure readings using plastic disposable stethoscopes that they could take home.
"We want to get kids thinking about possible careers in health care," said Shelly Laslo, career connections educator at KCCC. "We had a lot of positive feedback from the program we did at East Knox Elementary last fall. There’s great potential to have health care career expos like this in other county elementaries."
Hanna Ford, another KCH employment specialist, conducted an experiment she previously carried out at East Knox Elementary. She swabbed the mouths of anonymous students along with their hands and shoes before cultivating bacteria cultures at the hospital.
"We talked with the children about the importance of washing their hands as part of good hygiene," Ford explained.
Pearl Purdum, a first-grade teacher at Danville Elementary School, praised the event for broadening students' understanding of health care professions. "This helps them learn that health care is a lot more than just doctors," she said. "They are never too young to start thinking about careers."
