May 13, 2005

Recess: MGHers take their kids to work

"Discovering Health Care" was the theme for this year's MGH Take Our Children to Work Day held April 29. Adapted from the national Take Our Daughters to Work Day, the annual event was originally an opportunity for daughters ages 9 to 14 to spend a day in the workplace and see women working in nontraditional roles.

More than 300 kids came to the MGH with their parents, ready to work. Employees and their children went on a self-guided walking tour of the hospital, exploring historical MGH sites, such as the Ether Dome.

Later that day, children and parents alike were treated to a special visit from New England Patriots player Larry Izzo, who posed for pictures and signed autographs at the Children's Health Fair.

In the Burr 5 and 6 Conference Room, children could satisfy their sweet tooth by creating their own ice cream sundaes. In the Ether Dome, Richard Bringhurst, MD, senior vice president for MGH Research, spoke to the kids about the importance of medical research. Children also had the opportunity to enter a contest to design their own hospital gown. All the entries are posted in the Employee Access Center, Clinics 117, for viewing.