Five-year-old Amaayah was nervous when she was told she needed to go to hospital for an operation to have her tonsils removed. But after receiving a letter from a special bear called Baggins, she became excited to go into hospital and meet her new friend.
When Amaayah arrived on Ward 12, her very own Baggins the Bear was waiting for her on her hospital bed, along with a bag full of fun activities. As she arrived at the operating theatre, she met Big Baggins – a life-sized version of the bear – outside. A Baggins the Bear poster helped to distract her in the anaesthetic room. And when she woke up from her operation, she received her Baggins bravery certificate.
Amaayah was one of the first children to benefit from Baggins the Bear – a new initiative fully funded by Bradford Hospitals’ Charity. Thanks to Baggins the Bear’s success calming the nerves of both children and their anxious parents, Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has seen cancellations almost disappear completely. In fact, Baggins has allayed the fears of children to such an extent that surgery has been carried out more efficiently, with less delays due to distress, enabling surgeons to increase their surgery lists from seven to nine in each session.
Amaayah cuddled Baggins as she waited to go for her operation, saying she “loved” him. Her dad, Amza Parveez, said: “It’s nice to have something to make the children comfortable. Coming into hospital is strange for them, so it’s brilliant to have something to settle them down.”
Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is the first in the region to introduce the Baggins the Bear journey.
Andy Yates, Team Leader at Bronte Theatres, said Baggins was a real game changer for Bradford Teaching Hospitals. “We’ve had 100 per cent positive feedback from parents and it has been evident to see when the children arrive in theatre with their bears in tow!” he said.
“Watching the children go into the anaesthetic room freely without parents having to carry them in because they are scared has been a real pleasure to see. It’s wonderful that they no longer see hospitals as a scary place and that doctors and nurses are not scary people.”
Paediatric Sister Alison Childs said: “I was lucky enough to be working the day children – including Amaayah – met Baggins for the first time. It brought smiles to their faces and made the experience of coming into hospital a little less scary.”
Sharon Milner, Director of Bradford Hospitals’ Charity, is delighted with the success of Baggins the Bear and hopes to roll the initiative out further. “Who doesn’t love a bear to cuddle? The children who come in for surgery will always remember that Baggins the Bear brought them comfort. We hope he will continue to put a smile on their faces when they take him home, and that he will leave them with happy memories of their time in hospital. The impact on the whole family and the service as a whole is very important to us.”
Watch the impact Baggins has had on children at Bradford Royal Infirmary at
Anyone wishing to make a donation to fund Baggins the Bears can do so at https://bradfordhospitalscharity.enthuse.com/cf/baggins-the-bear
- A monthly donation of £3 will provide one bear per month to a child.
- A one-off donation of £30 will enable us to supply bears to a ward of children on a typical day of surgery.
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