Heartbeat: Storytime captures the imagination of paediatric patients
April 16, 2019
Paediatric patients on Lyndon 1 ward at Sandwell Hospital had the opportunity to meet the newest members of the SWB family, Veronica and Monica Vet and their nurse Mark the cuddly shark, as part of Storytime – an interactive story session involving songs and dance funded by Your Trust Charity.
Innovative ideas see patients on the children’s ward working with Veronica and Monica vet to help their cuddly critters get better.
Pets arrive with a letter from their owner explaining what they have been doing and how they need help. In February, we met Dexter dog who had hurt his paw and in March, we met Jas duck who needed a bath after getting his feathers dirty whilst doing crafts at home.
The Storytime sessions are funded by Your Trust Charity in partnership with Sandwell Public Libraries. Our library service plays a vital role in evaluating the sessions to see how they improve patient experience on our wards.
Jean Fenn, Library Manager at Oldbury Town believes the weekly interactive story sessions have many benefits for our younger patients at the hospital.
She said: “The aim of Storytime is to leave each child with a sense of positive wellbeing as it explores themes around reading for pleasure, being active, exploring and healthy eating.
Throughout the session, the storytelling embeds the importance of using stories, songs and imagination to enhance your mood.”
A firm favourite of storytime is also Mark the cuddly shark who shares his favourite story and gets everyone singing along to Baby Shark where children, parents and carers can laugh, dance and sing along!
Preeti Puligari, Library and Knowledge Services Manager echoes these thoughts and said: “Providing play therapy to children during hospitalisation has high therapeutic value and contributes to both their physical and emotional well-being and ultimately, to their recovery.”
She added: “Storytime can help children who are recovering from procedures to better cope with the experience and aims to change the way they feel about hospitalisation.”
The next Storytime sessions are taking place on Wednesday 17 April, from 2-3pm on Lyndon 1 ward. For more information please contact Your Trust Charity on 0121 507 5196.