Taiwan Black Bear Hospital (TBBH) – FMS-Taiwan

Name of the activity: Taiwan Black Bear Hospital (TBBH)

Country/NMO: HelMSIC Greece

Program: Ethics and Human Rights in Health

Contact information: contact [email protected] to get in touch with the Activity Coordinator

Type of the activity: Continuous Activity

Category: Education

Focus area: Medical Ethics (Patient Centered Care, Good Medical Practice, direct doctor-patient relationship)

Sustainable Development Goals addressed: SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-Being), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities)

General description:

In Taiwan Black Bear Hospital,children experience the whole process of a doctor visit and taking medicine at simulated hospitals with their stuffed toys,which act as their patients.Medical students deliver knowledge,like eating a balanced diet and keeping up with eye care to children in an interesting and interactive way.We hope this can reduce children’s fear when visiting the clinic while medical students had the chance to enhance their skills through cooperation and interaction with children.

Problem statement:

According to a survey, about fifty percent of children are afraid of doctor visit, especially those aged 2 to 5 years old. Common reasons included stranger anxiety, experiences of previous vaccination, and negative memories of being sick. Children’s anxiety can negatively impact parents’ interactions with providers during visits and cause some families to postpone or even cancel appointments. As a result, some children can’t get proper medical care due to their fear of seeing a doctor.

Target groups:

• Children

Beneficiaries:

• Medical students

Objectives:

(1)TBBH aims to provide children with positive healthcare experiences and reduce children’s fear of seeing a doctor. Also, let them be familiar with hospital environments and interaction with healthcare workers.

(2)Increase children’s knowledge on personal health and hygiene in a more interactive way.

(3)Increase the opportunity for medical students to interact with children and cultivate knowledge and skills about healthcare and communication skills with children.

Indicators of Success:

(1)Through feedback from medical students, children expressed that they are less afraid of seeing a doctor, and at the same time, they are more familiar with healthy lifestyle knowledge.

(2)Based on the positive feedback from kindergarten and elementary school teachers, the interesting way of delivering healthcare knowledge can effectively enhance the learning efficiency of children, and they are willing to cooperate with us the next year.

(3)Medical students have an enthusiastic response. They have learned healthcare knowledge and communication skills with children. And the estimated number of participants is expected to increase in the next year.

Methodology:

1.collaborate with kindergarten or elementary school

To better meet children’s needs,TBBH collaborates with kindergarten or elementary schools around Taiwan. We ask teachers in these schools what children’s exact needs are,and take those advice into consideration during the process of designing activities.

2.hospital simulation

During the hospital simulation, children, accompanied by medical students, attend “hospitals” with their stuffed toys suffering from an imaginative ailment.Then, they go through clinical examinations on their “patients.” After that, they transition to pharmacists, dispensing prescription medications to “patients.”When their “patients” are finally cured, children can understand the process of seeing a doctor.

3.sharing session

With the aim of capacitating communication skills and knowledge on healthcare of medical students,we hold sharing sessions regularly.Participants share their experiences and problems and discuss them together to enhance activity quality. 

Plans for evaluation:

(1)A self-evaluation form would be given to medical students to evaluate from their perspectives. The evaluation items include:

      a.the extent of children’s absorption of healthcare knowledge

      b.the degree of decrease in children’s fear of seeing a doctor

      c.the willingness of medical students to participate in the activity again.

      d.the effectiveness of learning healthcare knowledge of children based on teachers perspectives

(2)The survey would be conducted by Google Forms, and the statistical results will be presented in the form of charts

External collaborations:

none