Between the paint and the cupcakes
Friends in the Playroom
It's a place where you can really let your hair down and play with things like
wooden blocks, tempera paint, cupcake frosting and friends.
It’s a place where there are nearly always holidays or other special occasions to
celebrate— like birthdays or a magic show.
There are a lot of things going op in the pediatric playroom and Director of
Recreation Therapy for Pediatrics Sue Lynch is always looking for more and better
ways to help the young patients of Matas. Ran*kin and Howland wards, ranging In
age from a few months to 21 years old, "be more free to express their feelings.
"Our main goal is to support the child emotionally while he is in the hospital,”
she said. “The hospital can be a traumatic and scarey place when you’re alone,
away from your parents and you don't understand what they're doing to you. We try
to help by providing play, which is really a child’s type of work. '
The playroom opens its doors five days a week and for a couple of hours on
Saturday afternoons. There are extras, too, like Wednesday night activities catered
to the interests and needs of adolescents.
Thursday night is reserved for cooking up dishes especially suited for youthful
palates and Wednesday mornings bring the opportunity for parents and the
pediatrics staff to have a coffee hour all to themselves.
‘We work in conjunction with the
doctors and nurses, " Ms. Lynch said,
"and refer to them any problems we
observe in the playroom. The child's
freedom to be himself in the playroom
gives us the opportunity to observe him
and any misconception or anxiety he
might have about his hospital
experience.
"We can also observe children
scheduled for surgery and zero in on
their anxiety." she continued. "We even
have doctor equipment' in the
playroom. We support them and tell
them it’s okay to be afraid.'
The littlest ones in the intensive care
nursery and the nurseries on Howland
and Matas wards are provided with
mobiles and all kinds of toys to promote
tactile and visual stimulation. 'We try to
get them out of their cribs so they can
experience things like noise and sun
and better discriminate between
colors, Ms. Lynch said.
Staffed by two full-time play therapists, including Loretta Crawford and Ms.
Lynch, and Kathy Merritt, a part-time play therapist, the playroom is manned largely
by work-study and volunteering Duke students as well as graduate student interns
from Chapel Hill.
SUE LYNCH
MAGICAL CURE—Pre-medical student Tray Dunaway doubles up on his spare time
and medicinal expertise when he dons his top hat and goes to bat with his magic
cane for pediatric patients every other Saturday afternoon in the pediatric
playroom. (Photo by Margaret Howell)
w
A HELPING HAWD—Volunteer Mark Greer makes eating ice cream at the
playroom s parties more fun and friendly than ever.
CHEERFUL UNDERSTANDING—^The parent of a hospitalized
child gets a few words of encouragement along with a cup of
coffee and doughnuts from Brandon McDaniel, pediatric
social worker.