Dr. Red Nose Accompany You in Slowing Down Your Pace

“Last week, there was a Slow Bunny. Usually, he is quiet and reserved, always deeply engaged in cleaning and tidying, with little interaction with others, constantly focused on his own world. But during that connection with Dr. Red Nose, he and his partner unexpectedly took the initiative to interact and dance with the clowns! It was their first time meeting the clowns, and they opened their hearts and played with you all. This truly shattered our usual impression of them!” Cai Pei-Shan, Director of the Care and Education Division at Lida Qieneng Training Center, joyfully shared with us her emotion and surprise.

During the pandemic, just like our hospital services, the care and services provided by many institutions were restricted. Through the circulation of news and information, we also saw more areas that needed everyone’s support. Thus, Dr. Red Nose began making plans. While implementing our core services within the limits of our capabilities, we hoped to contribute to society and put more into practice through our expertise in the performing arts and our increasingly mature experience with video connections. Following our collaboration with SMA (Taiwan Spinal Muscular Atrophy Association), a few weeks ago we also connected with Lida Qieneng Training Center and became friends with the Slow Bunnies (people with intellectual disabilities).

As with our hospital performances, before each performance we receive records of the participants’ conditions and the appointment schedule from the institution. However, because of the unique nature of the people we serve, before working with the Slow Bunnies, our founder Ma Chao-Chi, who has participated in the World Medical Clown Congress and exchanged experiences in accompanying people with intellectual disabilities, and our Director of Education and Training, Luc Ducros, lead the Medical Clown in special discussion meetings. During the service, they observe continuously and provide performance guidance. In addition, Luc consulted relevant literature and drew on his experience and observations from in-person performances to develop a specialized performance guide for accompanying Slow-Flying Angels and Slow Bunnies.

“Hee hee hee hee hee 😁”—the continuous laughter is Wen-Wen’s (pseudonym) signature trait. She is a cheerful girl who loves to imitate others. On the day of the video connection with the clowns, the clowns told her a song-story about a dinosaur mother and her little dinosaur, and sang and gestured along with Wen-Wen. Wen-Wen was deeply immersed and interacted enthusiastically and attentively. When Tofu the clown made a mistake, Wen-Wen joined Lucky the clown in asking Tofu to do the movements properly. But Tofu was always making blunders and mistakes, keeping Wen-Wen laughing nonstop.

At the end of the story, the five little dinosaurs who had gone out to play and gotten lost all found their way home and hugged their dinosaur mother. Upon learning of this happy ending, Wen-Wen joyfully shouted, “Hooray!” and applauded along with the clowns, bringing the story to a close. Before saying goodbye, she made a heart with her fingers toward the clowns, blew them kisses, and said warmly, “Love you all! See you next time~” The Slow Bunnies are direct, distinctive, and frank in personality. Their laughter is their most direct feedback, and it is also the oxygen that encourages us to keep working hard.

Director Pei-Shan told us that Dr. Red Nose’ video connections and interactions are quite special for the Slow Bunnies. In addition to the reduced activities during the pandemic, which affected their opportunities for social interaction and going outdoors to some extent, Dr. Red Nose’ videos brought interpersonal interaction and fresh entertainment, giving them renewed vitality. The thorough preparation beforehand and care in following up afterward made them feel respected, while also filling the gap left by group classes by providing the one-on-one, customized companionship and stimulation they could not receive there.

After the video sessions, the Slow Bunnies would also return and share their experiences interacting with Dr. Red Nose with their peers. These experiences even became topics of everyday conversation among themselves and with their care staff, inspiring more Slow Bunnies to look forward to interacting with Dr. Red Nose and motivating them to “earn the opportunity to have a video session with Dr. Red Nose.” Director Pei-Shan said that this incentive gave them more opportunities for self-expression, free choice, discussion, and explanation, strengthening the Slow Bunnies’ self-advocacy—perfectly aligning with the principles they consistently work to promote.

We are greatly encouraged and moved by these results and responses. Of course, we believe we can do even better. Because the audiences differ, the clowns and the organization need to accumulate more experience so that the services can better meet their needs: finding the performance content most suitable for the Slow Bunnies, developing different interaction models, coordinating the balance between the “teacher” and “clown” roles, and so on.

The Lida Qieneng Training Center’s website says: “Perhaps they learn and respond more slowly, but given enough time, Slow Bunnies can also hop and bounce their way to the finish line.” And because of the characteristic of being “slow,” Dr. Red Nose also “slow down their pace” along with the Slow Bunnies, accompanying them as they take their time and savor the joy of interactive connection in a more detailed and lasting way.

And so, by following their pace and moving slowly with them, we once again became the ones who gained something from the experience.