Children, families and staff at Stepping Hill Hospital’s Treehouse children’s unit enjoyed a whole range of special visitors and activities to celebrated Play In Hospitals Week (October 10th – 17th).
The unit had been chosen as a showcase site for the event by the week’s organisers; the National Association of Health Play Specialists (NAHPS) and Starlight, the national charity which provides play and distraction services to hospitals and hospices.
With a different theme every day including being proud of who you are, celebrating heroes, fantasy, adventure, nature and wildlife, the unit’s play specialist team together with nursing staff organised a wide array of events and activities.
Visitors to the unit included your friendly neighbourhood Spiderman, clown doctor Louby Lou from Charity MedEquip4Kids, and firefighters from Offerton fire and rescue station, complete with a real fire engine for children to explore. Stockport NHS Foundation Trust Chief Executive Karen James OBE also visited the unit during the week to see the festivities. Games, facepainting, arts and craft, stories and music were all part of the celebrations.
Play In Hospitals Week is celebrated up and down the country to highlight the benefits of play for children during their hospital visit, which can help reduce anxiety, boredom and in some cases reduce the need for sedation. It was set up in 2010 to raise awareness of the positive impact of play in a hospital setting. Now in its 12th year, hospitals and hospices get behind the annual event with a week of play related activities.
Caroline Stores, play specialist at the Treehouse said; “Everyone at the Treehouse had an amazing time during Play In Hospitals week, whether it was the children, families or staff. Play is a very important part of the care and recovery of our patients, and this week is a great way of raising awareness of that and the work that we as play specialists provide, as well being a lot of fun! We’ve tried to make sure there was something for everyone in our activities this year, and we’re looking forward to continuing to work with Starlight in the future. I would personally like to thank everyone who made this possible, including all our visitors who kindly gave up their own time to support our team; we are so grateful.”
Cathy Gilman, Chief Executive of Starlight said; “Play and distraction is a vital resource for hospitals and hospices in the treatment of seriously ill children. It isn’t just a ‘nice to have’ it’s an essential part of treatment. Play in Hospital Week is a big part of recognising the impact that play has in a hospital setting and celebrating the work of Play Teams and all NHS staff who champion play in healthcare settings across the country. A huge thanks to all the hospitals and staff for getting behind this year’s event.”
To find out more about Starlight please visit www.starlight.org.uk/playweek