AP Archive | Hospital clowns bring joy to young Ukrainian cancer patients who survived Russian missile attack @APArchive | Uploaded 1 day ago | Updated 16 hours ago
(29 Sep 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kyiv, Ukraine - 23 September 2024
1. Various of actors Tetiana Nosova and Vladyslava Kulinich donning clown suits and visiting children in oncology department at Kyiv Children's Hospital
2. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Daria Vertetska, mother of Kira, who is receiving treatment in Kyiv Children's Hospital oncology department: ++STARTS ON PREVIOUS SHOT; PARTLY COVERED++
"The children are learning to joke around. They lift the spirits a bit. Today, Kira saw a ukulele and wanted one for herself. These little moments are so nice for the kids."
3. Various of clowns playing ukulele with Kira, a cancer patient
4. Daria moulding clay
5. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Daria Vertetska, mother of Kira, who is receiving treatment in Kyiv Children's Hospital oncology department: ++STARTS ON PREVIOUS SHOT; PARTLY COVERED++
"We were looking out the window and saw the explosions. We decided not to go out because she was sleeping, so soundly, she had been feeling unwell. But when we saw the black smoke from the window, we decided to leave the room, and just then the impact happened. Kira was on the bed, and the glass fell on her. She was injured by small shards of glass on her head, arms, and legs. It was truly terrifying at that moment."
6. Various of damage to exterior of Kyiv Children's Hospital from Russian missile
7. Various of Kira with clowns, moulding clay, playing ukulele
8. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Valentyna Mariash, head nurse of the oncology department: ++STARTS ON PREVIOUS SHOT; PARTLY COVERED++
"They (the clowns) help the children shift their focus, making them forget about their pain and not pay attention to the nurses and medical staff who are performing procedures. They provide psychological support, helping the children recover psychologically more effectively."
9. Various of clowns with patients
STORYLINE:
Their costumes are put on with surgical precision: Floppy hats, foam noses and bright clothes.
Moments later, in a beige hospital ward normally filled with the beeping sounds of medical machinery, there are bursts of giggles and silly singing.
As Ukraine’s medical facilities come under pressure from intensifying attacks in the war against Russia's full-scale invasion, volunteer hospital clowns are duck-footing their way in to provide some badly-needed moments of joy for hospitalised children.
The Bureau of Smiles and Support (BUP) is a hospital clowning initiative established in 2023 by Olha Bulkina, 35, and Maryna Berdar, 39, since the Russian missile strike on Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv in July, the organisations work has taken on a larger significance.
The attack on Ukraine’s largest paediatric facility forced the evacuation of dozens of young patients, including those with cancer, to other hospitals in the capital.
Some patients have now returned, including Kira, who was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma of the nasopharynx, who was treated to some light relief from the BUP volunteer clowns Tetiana Nosova, 22, and Vladyslava Kulinich, 22, who go by Zhuzha and Lala when in costume.
In a city grappling with nightly air raid alerts and power outages, overworked doctors say the presence of the volunteers brings a much-needed distraction, often helping children who had been undergoing painful medical treatment to feel happy again.
“They provide psychological support, helping the children recover psychologically more effectively," Valentyna Mariash, a senior nurse on the Okhmatdyt cancer ward, talking about volunteer clowns.
AP video by Anton Shtuka
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(29 Sep 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kyiv, Ukraine - 23 September 2024
1. Various of actors Tetiana Nosova and Vladyslava Kulinich donning clown suits and visiting children in oncology department at Kyiv Children's Hospital
2. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Daria Vertetska, mother of Kira, who is receiving treatment in Kyiv Children's Hospital oncology department: ++STARTS ON PREVIOUS SHOT; PARTLY COVERED++
"The children are learning to joke around. They lift the spirits a bit. Today, Kira saw a ukulele and wanted one for herself. These little moments are so nice for the kids."
3. Various of clowns playing ukulele with Kira, a cancer patient
4. Daria moulding clay
5. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Daria Vertetska, mother of Kira, who is receiving treatment in Kyiv Children's Hospital oncology department: ++STARTS ON PREVIOUS SHOT; PARTLY COVERED++
"We were looking out the window and saw the explosions. We decided not to go out because she was sleeping, so soundly, she had been feeling unwell. But when we saw the black smoke from the window, we decided to leave the room, and just then the impact happened. Kira was on the bed, and the glass fell on her. She was injured by small shards of glass on her head, arms, and legs. It was truly terrifying at that moment."
6. Various of damage to exterior of Kyiv Children's Hospital from Russian missile
7. Various of Kira with clowns, moulding clay, playing ukulele
8. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Valentyna Mariash, head nurse of the oncology department: ++STARTS ON PREVIOUS SHOT; PARTLY COVERED++
"They (the clowns) help the children shift their focus, making them forget about their pain and not pay attention to the nurses and medical staff who are performing procedures. They provide psychological support, helping the children recover psychologically more effectively."
9. Various of clowns with patients
STORYLINE:
Their costumes are put on with surgical precision: Floppy hats, foam noses and bright clothes.
Moments later, in a beige hospital ward normally filled with the beeping sounds of medical machinery, there are bursts of giggles and silly singing.
As Ukraine’s medical facilities come under pressure from intensifying attacks in the war against Russia's full-scale invasion, volunteer hospital clowns are duck-footing their way in to provide some badly-needed moments of joy for hospitalised children.
The Bureau of Smiles and Support (BUP) is a hospital clowning initiative established in 2023 by Olha Bulkina, 35, and Maryna Berdar, 39, since the Russian missile strike on Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv in July, the organisations work has taken on a larger significance.
The attack on Ukraine’s largest paediatric facility forced the evacuation of dozens of young patients, including those with cancer, to other hospitals in the capital.
Some patients have now returned, including Kira, who was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma of the nasopharynx, who was treated to some light relief from the BUP volunteer clowns Tetiana Nosova, 22, and Vladyslava Kulinich, 22, who go by Zhuzha and Lala when in costume.
In a city grappling with nightly air raid alerts and power outages, overworked doctors say the presence of the volunteers brings a much-needed distraction, often helping children who had been undergoing painful medical treatment to feel happy again.
“They provide psychological support, helping the children recover psychologically more effectively," Valentyna Mariash, a senior nurse on the Okhmatdyt cancer ward, talking about volunteer clowns.
AP video by Anton Shtuka
Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter: twitter.com/AP_Archive
Facebook: facebook.com/APArchives
Instagram: instagram.com/APNews
You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/cf41b278487840048091baa9070c9512
