Sutherland Hospital School E-Tour wins award

The Sutherland Hospital School recently won the Outstanding Initiative Award at the NSW Minister's and Secretary's Awards for Excellence 2022 for their new educational virtual tour.

The COVID pandemic changed many things, including putting a stop to the regular school visits coordinated by Sutherland Hospital’s internal school so students could learn about their local hospital.

The ‘E-Tour Incursion’ replaced the hospital school’s excursion program, and students now enjoy a video tour of various departments of Sutherland Hospital.

Sutherland Hospital School Principal Jacqueline Conwell said the virtual tour provides a unique opportunity to provide students with an interactive, multi-modal learning experience that not only meets learning outcomes but also serves to positively influence student well-being.

“The Sutherland Hospital went above and beyond to provide access to many of their departments and we were able to showcase them in the virtual tour. Students from Heathcote Public School to Moree East Public School have loved learning about our wonderful health staff and getting a glimpse into the workings of our busy community hospital,” Ms Conwell said.

“The virtual tour provides children with an understanding of how The Sutherland Hospital works and allays any fears they might have around an admission if they ever need to come to hospital,” she added.

Moree East Public School posted a thank you on their Facebook page that read: “A big thank you to Sutherland Hospital School for visiting us this week and running a hospital e-tour for our year one students. We spent the session learning all about hospital procedures, machines and equipment and what would happen if we were ever to visit hospital. We even got to dress up as doctors and use our own stethoscopes!”