Glasgow Middle School Students Learn All About Health

In its inaugural year, Glasgow Middle School students participated in a health fair on Sept. 5, where they learned about various health topics such as mental health, healthy eating, immunizations, positive body image and underage drinking.

Organized by Keenan Kuckler, who is a third-year medical student from the University of Washington, School of Medicine and training in the Glasgow Clinic, there were a total of nine booths students rotated through including the Valley County Health Department, the Glasgow Police Department, the hospital's dietary and physical therapy departments. Students also got their vital signs checked such as blood sugar, blood pressure and body mass index (BMI).

Students enjoyed having a change in their school routine while learning about healthy habits. "The kids were really excited about seeing where their blood pressure and blood sugar levels were," said Kuckler. "The favorite booth by far was the Glasgow Police Department where students were educated on underage drinking. It was a very interactive booth, which allowed students the hands-on experience regarding the effects of drinking." In an effort to get students learning and to interact with the information presented at each booth, students who visited each booth and received a stamp from the booth attendant were entered into a drawing to win prizes such as movie tickets and a FitBit.

After the day was over, students were also encouraged to share what they learned with their family when the school day ended. To encourage a dialogue at home, a form was sent home that was required to be filled out stating the information was reviewed. The form could then be turned back in for the student's name to be entered to win a flat screen television. "It's important to teach healthy behaviors at a young age in order to change established habits. It's also important to discuss these topics at home in order to make the changes," said Kuckler.

The Health Fair was the product of Kuckler being required, as part of her program, to do a project that involved community involvement. "I wanted to do a project that involved healthy living. One thing led to another and the idea of having a health fair at the middle school was spurred." said Kuckler. The goal is to have the health fair continue next year with either another medical student or a staff member from the hospital as Kuckler is almost done with her time here in Glasgow. Thanks to feedback from students, if the fair continues next year, other topics to be included would be prevention of pregnancy, benefits of more exercise and the effects of drug use.