About us Areas we support Leeds Children's Hospital Meet our Play Team Thanks to people like you, the Play Team runs seven days a week across Leeds Children’s Hospital. By Lisa Beaumont Therapeutic and Specialised Play Manager at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust "Last year, 11,000 children and young people missed out on school, friendships and normal life because they needed to stay at Leeds Children’s Hospital. An experience that many will have found daunting and scary at first because of unfamiliar faces, strange sounds and the knowledge they needed to have invasive or painful medical procedures. In this clinical environment, I can’t stress enough how important our Play Team can be to a child or young person. Our Play Specialists and Play Leaders can massively reduce anxiety and stress. Help normalise hospital surroundings. Be a friendly face to children and their families during the most difficult time, and help young patients understand what’s happening to them. They’re also great at helping children feel included - making unbearable procedures bearable, which speeds up treatment, recovery andrehabilitation - and simply making children smile, giggle and have huge belly laughs. This can only continue to happen with your support It costs £106 a day to fund a play team member. Can you make a regular gift to Leeds Hospitals Charity, so that together, we can make sure children have access to play every day? Give a regular gift today Your kindness and generosity can mean every child and young person gets vital support while they’re going through some of the worst days of their lives. It could also help a young patient’s treatment go more smoothly, which helps the hospital save money in the long run. Something that’s incredibly important to everyone because of stretched NHS budgets. Together, I know we can do this. I know we can make sure every patient at Leeds Children’s Hospital has the opportunity to benefit from our Play Team and the different types of play they offer." Our Play Team Claire Claire is a Play Specialist on Ward L52, Children's Neurosciences. When 14-year-old Luke was hesitant about undergoing a lengthy procedure to track his epileptic seizures, Claire "wired up" Luke's Mr Monkey teddy, which eased his nerves enough to allow the procedure to go ahead. “The play team are an amazing bunch of people. Luke was confined to one room for five days and they made his stay relaxed, fun and enjoyable.” - Luke's mum Liv Baby James made a special bond with the play team - particularly Liv, helping make procedures like a tracheostomy tape change less distressing. “They’ve been there for James’ first steps, literally cheering him on as he walked straight into Liv’s arms. They’re there every morning to play, sing, and help him develop." - Cayleigh, James's mum. Lucy Lucy is a Virtual Reality (VR) Play Specialist. The VR service at Leeds Children’s Hospital is a distraction tool used before, during and after medical procedures, providing a calming experience for young patients and their families. "There are so many benefits to VR. It helps reduce pain, reduce anxiety, and overall gives children a better hospital experience." Katie Katie is a Play Leader on the oncology and haematology wards at Leeds Children’s Hospital. Her role includes explaining diagnosis and treatment to young patients, and preparing them for procedures such as chemotherapy, scans and bone marrow transplants. “I do what I can to make sure children havea positive experience on their ward, and makethe environment a safe and friendly space.” Megan Megan is a registered Health Play Specialist who uses preparation, distraction and post-procedure play to support patients in our specialist diabetes centre and busy medical ward. Megan’s role also involves leading on the specialised teddy bear clinics at Leeds Children’s Hospital. “To put a smile on a child’s face when they’re having the worst day of their life is amazing. It’s an honour to make their lives better.” Libby Libby is a registered Health Play Specialist who saw how the limited availability of the Play Team affected some children and young people having life-saving transplants or dialysis. “There’s been a notable difference with our dialysis patients since we stopped being able to provide play for them. The nursing team are having to treat increasing cases of depression and anxiety.” Read more: Meet our patients Here are some examples of play that help our patients and their families Preparation play Our Play Team uses specialist dolls, books and other age-appropriate resources to prepare a child for treatment and medical procedures. This can help a patient overcome fears that have previously prevented treatment. Distraction play This type of play can make the unbearable bearable for a child and ensure a procedure takes place. It typically involves the use of bubbles, puppets, books, music, guided visualisation, virtual reality or other resources to reduce anxiety. Bereavement support A Play Specialist uses a range of memory making activities to support children having end-of-life care and their families. Importantly, this support can help patients, siblings and parents express their fears and feelings during the most difficult time of their lives. Because of Play... Thanks to your donations, the Play Team are available seven days a week across Leeds Children’s Hospital. Our Play Leaders and Play Specialists do an incredible job, supporting seriously ill children throughout the most difficult time of their young lives. But this can only continue with your support. It costs £106 a day to fund a play team member. Together, we can deliver play to every child in hospital who needs it. 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