Cambridge United players, the county's police and fire service and pet therapy dogs will be joining young patients at Addenbrooke’s to mark Play in Hospital Week.
There will also be music, dance and story sessions alongside visits from the army's bomb disposal unit, the Giggle Doctors and a chef.
It's the first time since the pandemic that this kind of event has been held.
Play is an essential part of a child’s development, teaching them social and communication skills and helps to explore the world around them.
The play team at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH) work with children to ensure their hospital stay doesn’t negatively impact their development.
Enabling children to play while they're in hospital is vital
Sophie Barber
Emergency Department Play Specialist Sophie Barber said:
“Some children spend a lot of time in hospital, sometimes even years, and our team offer daily play activities to children, whether it is a craft at the bedside or a chat in a playroom. We also offer therapeutic play to help children prepare for a procedure, either surgery, a scan or a blood test.”
"Awareness of the play specialist role is growing but we are keen to do more and utilise our skills. We are constantly training and keeping up to date with current practices, more recently in children’s mental health.
"Play is a safe space for a child and the activities we do can help identify why a child might be withdrawing. We can make a big difference for patients and try to make being in hospital a positive experience for a child"
Read more about Sophie and her work here:
This year’s Play in Hospital week also aims to demonstrate how play can boost good mental health.
The CUH play team is led by Therapeutic Play Manger Steph Fairbain. She said:
“Play in an innate need of a child. They have a right to play, as ratified by the UN and enshrined in law in this country and we uphold this in the hospital environment.
“A play specialist can de-escalate a child’s high level of anxiety through play or playful interaction.
"We have years of specific training and different methodologies to engage a child and can initiate a conversation with a toddler, a child or young adult that allows us to enter their world in a way that gives them a route back to us.”
Play is an integral feature of the designs for the new Cambridge Children’s Hospital (CCH), with architects creating spaces in the building to provide relief for patients from a clinical environment.
Children, parents and carers have shared ideas on what these spaces could be used for, including a room with a skylight to watch the clouds and stars and an audio-visual room with an interactive display to be a place of calm before or after a procedure.
To read more about a whole new way of treating patients in the planned hospital, visit the CCH website (opens in a new tab).