Dr. Red Nose to Set Up at Taipei Veterans General Hospital; French Association Also Expresses Approval

http://news.ltn.com.tw/news/life/breakingnews/1836785

〔Reporter Lin Yen-tung／Taipei report〕Dr. Red Nose are coming to Taipei Veterans General Hospital! Following National Taiwan University Hospital, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, and China Medical University Hospital, this will be the fourth hospital in Taiwan to have Dr. Red Nose. After a year of preparation, the program is scheduled to officially launch in the pediatric wards of Taipei Veterans General Hospital on October 6. Before then, the founder of the French Doctors of the Smile Association also visited Taiwan to share experiences and exchange ideas, and expressed approval of Taiwan’s achievements.

The Taiwan Dr. Red Nose Program originated with the French Doctors of the Smile Association. Launched in 2014, the program mainly trains a group of performers with professional training—including basic health education, the psychological development of children and adolescents, medical ethics, and self-awareness—to perform improvisational shows twice a week on a regular basis, accompanying patients, their families, and medical personnel.

Chen Hsin-hung, an attending physician in pediatric neurosurgery at Taipei Veterans General Hospital, said that when he was studying in Paris previously, he saw Medical Clown in local hospitals. When he learned that a group in Taiwan was doing this work, he very much hoped to collaborate with them. After a year of preparation, Dr. Red Nose can finally be seen at Taipei Veterans General Hospital.

Chen Hsin-hung said that Taipei Veterans General Hospital treats half of all pediatric brain tumor patients in Taiwan, as well as 70 to 80 percent of the country’s pediatric osteosarcoma patients. Although sick children cannot choose not to become ill or not to receive treatment, the hope is that through the companionship of Dr. Red Nose, children will feel that they have the right to choose while watching or participating in performances, making the wards feel less desolate.

Caroline Simond, founder of the French Doctors of the Smile Association, visited Taiwan for an exchange and said that these Medical Clown, who wear red noses in hospitals, do not put on exaggerated or noisy performances. Instead, they use performances to “accompany” each sick child through procedures such as blood draws and needle changes.

She said that although Dr. Red Nose were established in France 25 years ago and have performed long-term shows at 15 different hospitals, the Taiwan program has been in operation for only two years and already has four partner hospitals. She was very happy to see these results.

Ma Chao-chi, initiator of the program and director of the Sand Pebbles Troupe, also said that over the years of implementation, the responses received from the families of sick children, the children themselves, and medical personnel have all been very positive. Because the program relies on fundraising from all sectors, for now they only hope that these four partner hospitals can continue the program on a regular and sustained basis. Expansion will be considered only when more funding becomes available in the future.