Young patients click on to a more pleasant hospital stay

Published on Wednesday 24 June 2009 10:22

YOUNGSTERS in the Sick Kids hospital are now able to log on in every ward thanks to a long-term funding drive.

The charity that supports the hospital has given 25,000 to the project, which will not only help patients' education but also keep them entertained on long stays.

It means for the first time state of the art PCs with internet access are available in each ward as well as corridors. In all, the cash from the Sick Kids Friends Foundation has paid for 20 machines.

Hospital staff and patients said it would make life more enjoyable for a number of people.

Previously children would have had to use the computers in the hospital drop-in centre, or rely on having personal laptops to use.

The hospital's principal teacher, Juliet McCann, said that as well as allowing them to access websites of interest to them and keep in touch with friends, there were also valuable education benefits.

"This is a vast improvement on before and will complement their education," she said. "Their learning experience will be so much greater now and they can keep up-to-date with their own schools."

For young patients there are website resources such as Cbeebies, where a range of games and learning tools are based, while news and information websites are available for older patients.

The network is safety filtered so that nothing unsuitable can find its way into the hospital. Access to social networking sites such as Bebo and Facebook is denied, but e-mail can be used.

Maureen Harrison, chief executive of the charity, said she and colleagues spent years getting the money together to strike the deal for the computers.

She said: "Being in hospital as a child can bring feelings of loneliness, isolation and boredom.

"It is so different from children's normal environment. We work hard to combat these feelings and bring as much normality to their experience as we can.

"This gives children the opportunity to use computers as they would at home and in school."

An additional 10,000 a year will have to be raised to maintain the service. Once the hospital moves to Little France in 2012, the equipment will be based there within the same network.

Lynsey MacKenzie, whose 12-year-old daughter Shannon spent several months in the hospital, said such additions were crucial for children's spirits.

The Wallyford 35-year-old said: "It makes such a difference to their time in hospital if they can access computers. Eventually I hope every child has their own computer, and perhaps that's something for the new hospital."

Charlene Cummings, from Longstone, whose three-year-old daughter Chantelle uses the hospital, said she had noticed a change in her girl's happiness.

The 21-year-old said: "Now she loves coming into hospital so she can play on the computers. It's important for it to be as much like home as possible."