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Call for Care Buddies Continue
CALL for CARE BUDDIES Continues…..
Dr. Angela Jennings, Head of the Paediatric Ward, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, (QEH), and nurses who work with kids at the lone tertiary care facility, remain happy with the Care Buddy Project.
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But it is the heart warming reaction of the kids and the reports of how the toys are helping kids at the QEH that make the Project so worthwhile.
In fact, so popular is the Project, which started in 2019 with the objective of providing every child admitted to the Paediatric Ward with a stuffed today, that Treva Holder was asked to expand it to young kids who contracted Covid-19 as well as those who have to be taken to A&E.
To date, more than 800 stuffed toys have been provided to children, from newborns to age 12. Deliveries continued through the pandemic.
Holder, wife of Consul General Mackie Holder, started the project, inspired by the impact a stuff toy had on her niece who was given one when she was admitted to hospital in the USA with Type 1 diabetes at 12. Now 29, she still has the toy.
The toys have a calming effect on children, help with pain management – they are allowed to have the toys when getting injections or chemo – and the recovery process.
To date, more than 50 individuals and five associations have contributed to the project over the past three years.
Mrs. Holder’s relationship with the care givers on the Paediatric Ward has led to support beyond the provision of care buddies. In the past, with the support from associations and individuals she has donated toys to the siblings of kids sick on the ward, organized the wish list for three teenage cancer patients and this year provided nebulizers and coordinated the request for replacement of the chairs used by parents in the Ward. Ten chairs were donated.
The former senior advertising executive and owner of her own media company intends to expand her support to the Paediatric Ward as well as launch other projects.
Persons who wish to donate to the Care Buddy Project can use the following link: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ ls/1LC4P66HOATE0?ref=cm_sw_em_r_wl_ dp_4diB4vRBkj9Hq
