PHX Reporter

Join Diamond Children’s Medical Center at Reid Park Zoo for a teddy bear check-up clinic and fun day from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Oct. 12.

Diamond Children’s Medical Center will provide free teddy bears for the first 1,000 children and the opportunity to visit various medical stations placed around the zoo. Kids can also bring their own stuffed toy for a check-up. Diamond Children’s team members will provide education on how kids can keep their furry friends safe and healthy. All ages are welcome, and the clinic is free with regular zoo admission.

The event aims to help reduce children’s anxiety and fear of doctor visits and medical procedures.

“Children learn, and express themselves through play, so playing doctor is a powerful tool to normalize a medical experience and help them practice and gain the coping skills they need,” said Hadley Trull, child life director at Diamond Children’s Medical Center.

By providing children visiting the zoo with a stuffed teddy bear and interactive medical stations, children can learn more about basic medical treatments and health habits in an engaging manner.

In addition to the teddy bear clinic, young guests and their families can meet several new additions to the zoo, including baby Meru, the elephant calf, and Moyo, the giraffe calf. They can also learn how the zoo cares for animals during zookeeper chats and discover more about animals and their habitats at volunteer interpretive stations.

Reid Park Zoo is an AZA-accredited Zoo located in Tucson’s Reid Park. Founded in 1965, Reid Park Zoo has grown to 24 acres of land housing more than 300 animals from around the world in naturalistic exhibits. Welcoming over 500,000 visitors annually, Reid Park Zoo connects people and animals to inspire protection of wild animals and wild places.

Banner Children’s – Diamond Children’s Medical Center provides pediatric care for children from newborns to teens. Services include emergency care, heart disorders, traumatic brain injury, autism and developmental disorders, cancer treatment among others. It is Arizona's only pediatric medical facility connected to an academic research facility — the University of Arizona Steele Children’s Research Center — where physician-scientists advance children's health through groundbreaking science.