By Laura Michell
Children having surgery at Northern Hospital are driving themselves into the operating theatre thanks to the Whittlesea Salvation Army.
The Salvos, in collaboration with the Northern Health Foundation, donated a Range Rover Kiddy car to the hospital, enabling young patients to swap a hospital trolley for a set of wheels on their way to theatre.
The idea of having kids drive themselves to surgery came from Northern Hospital anaesthetist Jenny Coulson.
“As a group, we wanted to avoid kids getting stressed when they come into theatre,” Dr Coulson said.
“We thought the use of the car would make the kids happier when coming here.”
According to Northern Hospital, the use of children’s cars has been a success in many hospitals across Asia.
Northern Health Foundation director Yvonne Amos said it was a joy to collaborate with the Whittlesea Salvation Army and Dr Coulson to bring the toy car to the hospital.
“To have our youngest patients distracted by being able to drive themselves to theatre instantly takes the stress out of the experience,” she said.
The car has been fitted with personalised Whittlesea Salvation Army number plates.
