Children’s home benefits

SOME of the South Rand hospital departments together with their rehabilitation ward came together to make sandwiches for St Mary’s Children’s Home.

The hospital’s allied departments (occupational therapy, speech therapy/audiology, physiotherapy and dietetics) provided 86 sandwiches to the children’s home.

Janice Cowley, occupational therapist, said the allied departments decided to get their patients involved, so they too can have their 67 minutes where they give back to the local community.

“As can be seen by this project, being in a less fortunate situation, faced with various disabilities, does not always mean that we cannot continue living our lives and giving to others. This assists with striving to empower the patients and overcome stigmatisation. Preparation was done beforehand by making posters and props for the day. Our 67 minutes were spent all together in our rehabilitation gym, making sandwiches and listening to South African music.”

At the end of the sandwich-making, every person stated why they think it’s important to give back to the less fortunate or why they are proudly South African.

A positive response was heard with one of the patients expressing: “We are a very diverse and complicated country and for us to come together with all our nationalities and cultures, to be working together to bring this country to something very special, it’s amazing! What we’ve done now is show that us we a country of different nationalities, cultures and religions can sit down and do something together to help someone in need. I think that’s very important and that’s where we can grow together.”

The sandwiches as well as a teddy bear donated to South Rand Hospital by Baragwanath Hospital Comfort Committee (BHCC), was delivered by the hospital’s therapists to the children’s home. “We as South Rand Hospital are proud to have been able to be a part of this special and important day and will continue every year to give back to those that are less fortunate,” said Janice.