Taking a child into hospital is a traumatic and anxious experience not only for the child but for the parent as well.
To help a child and their parents understand what will happen when they go to hospital staff at the Royal Hospital for Children (RHC) has been working with the charity What? Why? Children in Hospital (WWCIH) to produce a number of videos aimed at preparing children for their hospital visit.
The series of YouTube videos cover subjects such as MRI, CT, ECG, Echo, EEG and Nerve Conduction Studies. The charity has made hospital videos showing what happens during the procedure and also play videos with pretend play ideas to help families prepare at home.
There are 11 videos in total with seven having been filmed in the RHC with NHSGGC staff.
Kevin Hill, NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde Director of Women and Children’s Services hopes these videos will be a useful tool for any parent having to bring their child to hospital.
He said: “We know that parents can find it difficult explaining to their child what will happen when they get to hospital.
“They are already anxious for their child and these videos can provide a general overview on what their child is about to experience.
“Often parents do not understand what their child is about to undergo so these videos not only educate the child but can also give the anxious parents some reassurance which in turn can help make the child feel calmer.”
Dr Iain Horrocks, Consultant Paediatric Neurologist, said: “This is a fantastic resource for families and children to have access to; it will be invaluable in preparation for the kinds of tests that we need to do.
“These tests sound scarier than they actually are, but these short videos are a perfect aid in explaining complex investigations in a child friendly manner.”
Marit Boot, founder of the WWCIH charity, started the charity after watching her own little girl go to hospital to get a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan and an Electroencephalography (EEG) to check if her brain was working ok. Her daughter was very worried and kept asking ‘What? Why?”
Marit said: “When my daughter had to go to hospital I looked for videos to see what would happen in hospital. I only found written information and images, nothing that I could show her.
“I made a pretend MRI scanner from a cardboard box to practice with her teddy. We had fun and playing helped her to feel confident she could do the test herself.
“Our charity wants to help other parents by making videos about hospital procedures, which they can watch with their child.”
To see the videos, please visit www.wwcih.org.uk/videos