Connecting with kids

September 4, 2009

By Mark Ferguson

During a recent study of youth at a Saskatoon westside school, kids as young as 12 years old were in such poor health that their bodies were acting like those of 60-year-olds.  The RBC Nurses for Kids program in the College of Nursing is trying to find ways to get kids healthy again, and it’s an uphill battle that many U of S nurses are taking in full stride.

“Just look at the playgrounds on a beautiful day – they’re empty,” says Susan Fowler-Kerry, professor and  director of the RBC Nurses for Kids program. “I don’t know what it was like for you growing up, but when I was young we played outside. Now, we’re seeing a whole generation hooked on video games, TV, high-fat foods and a sedentary lifestyle. It is in everyone’s interest to get these kids healthy again.”

After the university received a gift of $750,000 from RBC in 2008, Fowler-Kerry was asked to lead the seven-year pilot program. “It’s been very exciting, terrifying, time consuming,” she says. “But I’m enjoying the challenge.”

In just two years, the program has evolved quickly, with seven separate projects in the works, four of which are well underway already. All of the programs share the same goal of educating the public to lighten the future load on the health-care system. The demand, says Fowler-Kerry, is outweighing the capacity.  Prevention is the only solution.

So prevention is where Fowler-Kerry and her colleagues are focusing all of their efforts.

One of the programs launched through RBC Nurses for Kids is aimed at creating a safe environment for youth with disabilities when dealing with issues of sexuality. Fowler-Kerry points out that children with disabilities deal with the same issues of sexuality - bullying, abuse, and healthy dating and relationships - as other children.

Another program is looking at childhood obesity while the nurses are also attempting to help children who are growing up with parents who suffer from post-partum depression, she explained. Water quality is another area of focus. 

Each one of these issues poses an enormous challenge for RBC Nurses for Kids, she said, but with the help of her colleagues, Fowler-Kerry is determined to help each and every kid she can.

“There are over 20 nurses for every physician in the province, so we can a make a big difference in the health-care system. I don’t think we as nurses advocate our strengths enough. We tend not to strut our stuff, but we have knowledge and skills that aren’t fully taken advantage of.”