I was born in 2006 with a serious congenital heart defect (CHD). It has required five open-heart surgeries during my 13 years. The last, at the height of the April 2020 Covid-19 pandemic in NYC, had us locked down in the hospital for a week. As I know from lots of experience of being in hospitals, it can get very boring as you are exhausted and don’t really want to do anything. I didn’t even want to go on my phone which is a surprise because every teen nowadays seems to be addicted to theirs. Watching movies sometimes made me nauseous. Unfortunately, because I had my surgery during the COVID 19 pandemic, the usual play area in the ICU was closed so I was confined to my room with little to do.
Fortunately, there was a wonderful nurse who came by and gave me a choice of some toys and games I could pick from. These were common, simple games like Uno and Jenga but it made all the difference as it gave me — and my family — something to do. It also helped get me moving a bit which the doctors always ask for. It took my mind off the pain and helped pass the time.
From this experience, I realized that there should be some type of service in hospitals that give children games and activities that they can do during their hospital stays. The nurse who gave me the game told me they get sporadic donations so they cannot always offer things to kids. In addition, most of the donations are stuffed toys and activities for babies, not older kids. This was where the idea for my project was born.
What my project aims to do is give children with extended hospital stays appropriate and engaging games and toys for them to play with that are free. It might be a while, if ever before hospitals are comfortable sharing toys and games so we aim to give each child a toy for them to keep. This will aid in their recovery taking their mind off their pain and helping them to start moving again. We are currently giving kids “Comfort Kits” developed with the NYP Child Life team at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. They kits include toys, games & other items. We need this money to help pay the cost of the toys & games and 100% of the funds will go toward providing the toys & games. Whether you know a family affected by CHD or another childhood disease requiring extended hospital stays or not, this small gesture can be an important part of their recovery. I appreciate your help.
