Teddy bears are helping with treatment of children at A&E department at Hereford County Hospital (From Hereford Times)

Teddy bears are helping with treatment of children at A&E department at Hereford County Hospital

8:00am Friday 19th February 2010 in

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TEDDY bears are helping with the treatment of children at the A&E department at Hereford County Hospital.

Some of the cuddly animals have their limbs put in plaster, strips and dressings stuck on their bodies and often take a dose of medicine to encourage a poorly youngster to do the same.

During the past five years, Freemasons in Herefordshire have donated several thousand of the soft teddy bears to the hospital specifically for this purpose.

Staff now consider the cuddly toys to be effective members of the A&E team.

Sean Bree, an emergency nurse practitioner, wrote to Richard Bailey, past provincial grand secretary for the Masonic Province of Herefordshire, thanking them for the bears and explaining the valuable role they play.

“We use them mainly for children under 10 years of age.

However, older children who are in pain or are distressed and frightened sometimes regress and also benefit bear therapy,” he wrote.

“I cannot explain how this works, but I guess we have all been there. Most of us can recall our one really special soft toy from our childhood.”

The children often take their bears home with them and staff are sometimes honoured when the youngsters name their toy after them.