Hong Kong Children’s Hospital with a strong human touch
16 September 2018
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Most children are afraid of going to the doctor and taking medicine when they fall ill. The prospect of staying in the hospital spells even more fears and anxieties for them. For parents, it is also a big challenge mind-wise and body-wise if their little ones have to be hospitalised. Earlier on I visited the soon-to-open Hong Kong Children’s Hospital (HKCH) to have a look at its facilities and environment. Very different from general hospitals with an institutional ambience, it has impressed me as a place that will bring hope and love to child patients in addition to quality medical services for its strong human touch.
When stepping into the lobby of HKCH, visitors could immediately feel the open and cheerful ambience with the high headroom, natural lighting and colourful décor. Taking a closer look, I could see that much thought has gone into the interior design. For example, eight animal motifs have been used as the decorative themes for different floors. Animals are children’s friends. Their company is a source of warmth and comfort that can help children relax during their recovery in the hospital.
Life in a hospital can be dreary to young patients and their parents. There are no more school classes or teachers’ storytelling time for the children. The boredom and depressed feelings are definitely no good to anyone’s moods and recovery. In this hospital, however, there are animal-themed murals all around, creating sort of a wonder-filled pictorial book that can inspire imaginative stories in the children’s minds and help them ease their way through the lengthy recovering process.
Children are energetic and outgoing, and always enjoy playing around. It is also a sight that parents would most want to see as it tells them their little ones are getting better and restoring their spirits. Engaging in games and having fun bring joy to children. The rehabilitation garden on the ground floor of HKCH has plentiful sunshine and fresh air to offer, while the playrooms in wards provide a place for them to make friends and find mutual support.
Thought is also given to the hospital clothing to cheer up the young residents. A new series of clothing for in-patients has been produced for HKCH with a generous donation from the Walt Disney Company. Adopting a bright colour tone, the clothing features children’s favourite characters like Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. The design aims not only to reduce child patients’ anxiety but also to uplift their healing experience. Besides, a pyjama top with side openings is specially introduced for patients undergoing intravenous infusion, which facilitates clinical care and safeguards patients’ privacy.
Even adults will feel lonely and helpless when they fall sick, and children are no exception. To sick children, parents are an important source of support. They give their best to take care of the children and want to stay by their side lest their children feel lonely or nervous. Therefore, parents need to have good mental and physical strength to cope with the challenges. Their needs and feelings are taken care of at HKCH. The space provided at the side of each in-patient bed is large enough to accommodate a foldable bed for a family member to stay overnight. Moreover, 20 rooms are made available in the parents’ quarters for those whose children are under isolated or intensive treatment. Such facilities and arrangements fully demonstrate the “family-focused” concept of the hospital.
The fear for medical devices is fairly common in child patients. The hospital’s child-friendly medical equipment can reduce their anxieties during treatment. For example, the noise from the magnetic resonance imaging scanner specially designed for children is reduced by 90% compared with those for adults. Moreover, cartoons and audiovisual clips will be played to divert children’s attention. The amount of radiation produced by computed tomography scans is also reduced substantially to minimise the exposure risk of children. With the highest scanning speed in the world, the scanner can capture quality images in spite of children’s possible body movements in the course of scanning. Therefore, children need not hold their breath or receive anaesthesia.
HKCH will commence operation in phases, starting with specialist out-patient services on 18 December this year. Consisting of two 11-storey blocks, the hospital compound is equipped with 468 beds, operating theatres, an ambulatory care centre, a specialist out-patient clinic, etc. It will serve as a hub for serious, complex and uncommon paediatric cases requiring multi-disciplinary management.
For children receiving medical treatments, having their parents by their side is the greatest assurance. For parents, seeing the little patients through to recovery is their biggest wish. Love gives us boundless strength. HKCH, as a love-filled hospital with its thoughtful human touch, is set to turn a new page in our paediatrics service by providing excellent services for paediatric patients and their parents.
