Santa Comes to Bara
- LR
Santa paid the paediatrics surgery ward of Chris Hani Baragwaneth Hospital an early visit.
Santa paid the paediatrics surgery ward of Chris Hani Baragwaneth Hospital an early visit – on 4 December 2016, the ward officially opened a brand new, innovative play area for children recovering from surgery in ward 32.
Their previously uninspiring play area outside the ward, just a dusty piece of ground usually out of bounds for the danger posed to young and healing children, was completely transformed into a play area boasting cool new astro grass, a mini cycle track with brand new bikes and scooters, a bubble pond and wonderful new jungle gym. Aside from the fun factor – the area has been designed with the rehabilitation of the children in mind.
Under the watch of Professor Jerome Loveland, Academic Head for the Department of Paediatric Surgery (Wits), the doctors, nurses, the staff of Paediatric surgery went to extraordinary efforts to raise funds for their non-profit organisation - Surgeons for Little Lives (http://www.surgeonsforlittlelives.org). By hosting a charity cycling event, an annual charity dinner event as well as soliciting of smaller donations by members of the community, they were able to raise almost a million rand to improve the hospital, wards and its surroundings. The new play area for Ward 32’s little patients amounted to around R390 000 of this, and in addition, a local restaurant chain donated the jungle gym worth R100 000.
To officially open the play area the team threw a fabulous pre- Christmas party attended by many of the cyclists, some of the board members, the hospital representatives and of course the children of ward 32.
Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, the third largest hospital in the World, has seen a 28% increase in admissions to general paediatric wards since 1992. Available resources are extremely limited and the level of care to patients in this large, overburdened state hospital is very basic. This means it takes longer for children to recover from surgery and complications are more likely to set in. That is why the care put into recovery and rehabilitation at ward 32 is so important for their physical, mental and spiritual well-being.
Clearly, all the girls and boys of ward 32 had been very good in 2016!