Presentation
Our mission
The mission of the Foundation Theodora is to give hospitalized children an opportunity to forget for a while their hospital environment, allowing them to go back to their world of color, music magic and humor by means of laughter.. Bringing entertainment through humor and other related activities, the Foundation Theodora offers to each hospitalized child, whatever his illness, the opportunity of an individual visit by a Clown Doctor with whom to play and joke.
The objectives are the following:
- to have a positive effect on sick children in hospital and their families
- to collaborate with hospital staff to complement their work
- to run a clown doctor training program in partnership with a medical school
- for the training to be recognized by health authorities for its professional standards and specialized role
Why have Clown Doctors?
A stay in hospital can be a scary and daunting time for us all, particularly for children. They find themselves in a new environment full of different people, strange equipment and tests and procedures that may often be painful or uncomfortable. The usual routine of school, friends and play can be disrupted as the illness becomes the focus. Many of the children we visit spend weeks or months at a time, away from home. On a dialysis ward for example, children can be there 3 times a week for most of their childhood and on an oncology ward children may be in and out of hospital for years. At the Foundation Theodora we believe in making life better for children in hospital.
