LOXLEY — First graders across Baldwin County traded in the classroom for a hospital setting last week, without the nerves that usually come with it.

Gulf Coast Let's Pretend Hospital, hosted at Baldwin Preparatory Academy in partnership with Thomas Hospital Infirmary Health, gave young students a hands-on introduction to the world of health care through an interactive, simulated experience. The program, held April 6-10, walked students through a mock hospital visit, from check-in to discharge. Along the way, they rotated through stations like the emergency room, radiology, operating room and a lesson on germs using UV light.

The program aimed to make hospitals less intimidating and spark curiosity early.

"They're just so cautious and eager and excited in first grade," said Brook Jordan, communications specialist for Baldwin County Public Schools. "Kids are scared of needles and all the intimidating stuff. This is a way to make them feel more comfortable, but also to show and introduce them to our awesome school."

Each station was led by Baldwin Preparatory Academy students, turning the event into a peer-led experience that benefited both the younger children and the high schoolers guiding them.

For Chloe Simpson, a junior at Baldwin Prep with plans to become a physical therapist, the program offered valuable early exposure to a career she hopes to pursue.

"Because I used to go to physical therapy a lot, I realized how much it helped me," Simpson said. "So I want to go to South Alabama for that, or Auburn, if I can, and work somewhere down here."

Simpson said the program not only introduced first-graders to health care but also gave high school students a chance to gain real-world experience, which is exactly the type of programming suited for learning at Baldwin Prep.

"It's really good for getting some experience," she said. "People want to be a nurse. They want to be a doctor. We have an OR room down there — people want to be surgeons, anesthesiologists — so it's giving them a sort of preparation for it."

She said the younger students were fully engaged in the experience.

"They think it's really fun. I would love it if I was a patient in a fake hospital," Simpson said. "The last group heard everyone's heartbeat, so they learned new stuff, and I thought they really liked it."

For some of the first-graders at Foley Elementary School, the experience came down to one simple, hands-on moment.

"My favorite part about today was washing my hands," Brandon Chavez, 7, said.

The program hosted multiple first-grade classes from across the county, with plans to expand in the future. Organizers said the initiative is part of a broader effort to connect education with career pathways while building comfort and familiarity with healthcare environments at an early age.

Gabriella Chavez is a Report for America corps member who writes about growth and development in Baldwin County and our natural spaces for Gulf Coast Media. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://tinyurl.com/yaf8yf5n.