Interactive toys have transformed the experience for thousands of children like Rishi who visit the Children’s Emergency Department each year.

The staff at the Children’s Emergency Department are delighted to have received the delivery of brand-new interactive toys so children can find joy and distraction in play whilst visiting the department with their family. As one of the busiest children’s emergency departments in the country, over 60,000 children visit each year. This means many families can be waiting to see a medical professional during busy periods. Anxious parents can often be seen with restless children in need of a distraction.

Before the new toys were installed, the only form of entertainment available was a basic television, which did not meet the needs for the large numbers of families who could be waiting in the department at any one time.

Thanks to support from the Leicestershire and Rutland Freemasons’ Charity, the department has been transformed with a range of wall-mounted, age-appropriate toys that are all wipe-clean for infection prevention. These include a range of interactive play boards and digital play screens that are suitable for children of different ages.

Carmen Casingena has worked as a Play Specialist for Leicester Children’s Hospital for the past seven years and is extremely thankful to the community for making a great thing happen for children and their families.

Carmen explained, “The toys allow the Play Specialist Team to encourage the children to play whilst they are in the waiting area. It helps to calm them and build a relationship of trust.

“This is incredibly useful, as children are much more likely to be accepting of their treatment when they already feel comfortable with hospital staff.”

Carmen added, “It’s so heart-warming to see the social and emotional wellbeing of children being exceeded and how parents can also find some relief knowing their children are able to feel comfort in play within the department.”

For children like Rishi, age two, the benefit of the new toys has been tremendous. Rishi has received care from visiting the department with his parents on several occasions over the past year. Now the new toys have been installed, his most recent experience just before Christmas was a lot different.

Rishi’s Dad, Kirti, said, “It’s so wonderful to see Rishi smiling and playing with the toys whilst we are waiting to be seen by the doctor. “Even though he is feeling poorly, the new games on the interactive screens distract him from how he must be feeling, and he is able to play with similar touch screen games like he has at home.”

Kirti also added, “Waiting times can sometimes be very long, so the toys are a great help for parents like me with a two-year-old. Rishi can now play with the new toys and socialise with other children, keeping him very well entertained for lengthy periods. And I have peace of mind that he is kept busy whilst we wait. Thank you so much for making my family’s experience of the department so much better.”

Families now find solace in knowing that, even in challenging times, moments of joyful play and relief are made possible through the kindness of support from the community.