|
|
|
Tayla Chandler wasn’t thinking about learning about health when she asked her mom to go to Girls’ Night at McCune-Brooks Regional Hospital.
“I liked the fact that there was going to be cool stuff out here,” Chandler, 13, said. “Plus it was a chance to learn how to have fun with my mom and meet new people.”
Chandler’s mom, Sarah Johnson, was thinking about education when she agreed to bring Tayla and her sisters to the event.
“I thought it would be a neat educational experience for all of us,” Johnson said. “I was kind of excited about the self-defense class. Girls need to know how to protect themselves, it’s important.”
Self-defense, makeup, women’s health, shopping, it was all available Thursday night at McCune-Brooks.
Physicians for Women’s Health and McCune-Brooks sponsored the event.
Dr. Maritza Manrique-Kiniry, one of the partners at Physicians for Women’s Health, and the mother of a little girl, said the event was meant as a chance for mothers and daughters to bond and learn a little bit at the same time.
“In today’s society, kids go to school and parents go to work and the only time they get together is dinner time,” Manrique-Kiniry said. “Then other activities get in the way and even that opportunity is lost. We wanted to give that back for one night.”
Manrique-Kiniry said she and other doctors were answering anonymous questions girls and their mothers might have about all manner of health issues.
“This is an opportunity to ask questions,” she said. “Kids are not open to their parents about certain kinds of questions and we see a lot of teen pregnancy and other problems because of that. It’s difficult for parents to bring up those kinds of topics and kids will almost never bring up the questions they should. Girls’ bodies are changing and they have a lot of questions, but it’s a topic not easily brought up. We want this to be an opportunity for moms and daughters to talk about topics they might be uncomfortable about.”
Vicki Pittman, with the Success ATA Leadership Academy in Joplin, staffed the booth where self-defense advice was being offered.
Pittman said women and girls of all ages need to know how to take care of themselves in all situations, even the worst kind of situation.
Tayla Chandler wasn’t thinking about learning about health when she asked her mom to go to Girls’ Night at McCune-Brooks Regional Hospital.
“I liked the fact that there was going to be cool stuff out here,” Chandler, 13, said. “Plus it was a chance to learn how to have fun with my mom and meet new people.”
Chandler’s mom, Sarah Johnson, was thinking about education when she agreed to bring Tayla and her sisters to the event.
“I thought it would be a neat educational experience for all of us,” Johnson said. “I was kind of excited about the self-defense class. Girls need to know how to protect themselves, it’s important.”
Self-defense, makeup, women’s health, shopping, it was all available Thursday night at McCune-Brooks.
Physicians for Women’s Health and McCune-Brooks sponsored the event.
Dr. Maritza Manrique-Kiniry, one of the partners at Physicians for Women’s Health, and the mother of a little girl, said the event was meant as a chance for mothers and daughters to bond and learn a little bit at the same time.
“In today’s society, kids go to school and parents go to work and the only time they get together is dinner time,” Manrique-Kiniry said. “Then other activities get in the way and even that opportunity is lost. We wanted to give that back for one night.”
Manrique-Kiniry said she and other doctors were answering anonymous questions girls and their mothers might have about all manner of health issues.
“This is an opportunity to ask questions,” she said. “Kids are not open to their parents about certain kinds of questions and we see a lot of teen pregnancy and other problems because of that. It’s difficult for parents to bring up those kinds of topics and kids will almost never bring up the questions they should. Girls’ bodies are changing and they have a lot of questions, but it’s a topic not easily brought up. We want this to be an opportunity for moms and daughters to talk about topics they might be uncomfortable about.”
Vicki Pittman, with the Success ATA Leadership Academy in Joplin, staffed the booth where self-defense advice was being offered.
Pittman said women and girls of all ages need to know how to take care of themselves in all situations, even the worst kind of situation.
Pittman teaches girls to give a date or someone else three chances to voluntarily back off when they say no, then, if they persist, take control of the situation physically if needed.
“No girl should have to do something unless she is willing,” Pittman said. “They have the right to be able to protect themselves and get the situation under control. It it’s with a joint lock, pressure points, so be it.”
Pam Barlet, spokeswoman for McCune-Brooks, said the overall goal of the event was to promote self-esteem in girls and help them develop into strong young women and develop strong relationships with their mothers.
“We want to educate women and girls about their bodies,” Barlet said. “An educated woman is a healthy woman.”
