By Ellen Blessington | Senior Community and Communications Fundraiser
“Thanks to Dr Fancy Pants and Dr Geehee - my son laughed so hard, and he didn’t want to leave the hospital because he wanted to see them again!”
At Theodora Children’s Charity, we work in laughter, smiles, peaceful moments, and lots of giggles.
We are delighted to share our 2023 Impact Report, which reflects on a busy year bringing playful encounters to over 15,000 children, as well as providing focused training for our Giggle Doctors to help them connect joyfully with each child they meet. Read about what a Giggle Doctor visit can mean for children, their families, hospital staff, and our all-important donors, and find out how Giggle Doctor’s child-led approach provides one solution for providing play in hospital for children and young people with SEN and developmental conditions.
https://theodora.co.uk/2023-impact-report/
The long term positive effects of the Giggle Doctor visits can last for months and even years, helping to bring special memories and magical moments for children and their families in challenging times.
“Rory was admitted to hospital with a chest infection which was slow to clear. Despite the amazing nurses and play team, he was getting very fed up after several days in hospital.
Luckily the Giggle Doctors came to visit! We first met them in the play area. Rory was playing with some other children and they joined in a musical performance. At that point we had to drag Rory away for a dose of medicine, but luckily the Giggle Doctors were soon in the ward.
His favourite was Dr Geehee because she made lots of rude noises (we know it was her even though she said it wasn’t)! Rory says “The best bit was when Dr Fancy Pants walked through the toilet door because she thought it was the exit. I laughed and laughed when she came back out!”
Staying in hospital is exhausting and strange for everyone and the Giggle Doctors were a nice break from all of that. It was lovely to see the children and parents all laughing together. It has made a real difference that he has positive memories of his illness and not just remembering all the horrible scary parts.
When Rory was discharged, he said he didn’t want to leave as he was hoping to see the Giggle Doctors again before he went home. Since then he has been telling everyone about them! He tells them “The Giggle Doctors are like real doctors because they made me feel better but in a different way.” – Crystal, Rory’s mum
30 year anniversary
Last week marked our very first Giggle Doctor visit which took place at Great Ormond Street Hospital in 1994! To celebrate this special occasion, our founders, trustees and head office team joined Dr Teapot and Dr Flowerpot at GOSH during their visit. We are all incredibly proud of the Giggle Doctors and the difference they have made for children and their families in hospital for the past 30 years. (photos below)
Thank you
We were so grateful to have your support and as you can see, it makes a huge difference. As a small charity we have seen our income impacted in the last few years, meaning now more than ever we are relying on the generosity of our supporters to help us to continue bringing magical moments to children and their families at a time when they need it most.
Thank you for your continued support.
If you have any questions or would like to find out more, please feel free to email enquiries@theodora.org
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
