More than 150 children admitted to or who have received care at the Reina Sofía de Córdoba University Hospital in the last four years have had the opportunity to interact and enjoy the benefits of dog-assisted therapy. This initiative started in October 2019 in the Cordovan health complex under the coordination of the Motivational Activities Unit and the participation of numerous professionals, mainly from the Maternal and Child Hospital.
As the hospital center has detailed in a note, minors are entertained by feeding the animal, brushing it and playing, while promoting values ??such as empathy, companionship and cooperation. This canine intervention acts at two levels: playful, the game adds a sense of well-being and education in values, and therapeutic, increasing self-esteem and reducing the anxiety inherent in some areas of the hospital environment.
For the person in charge of the Motivational Activities Unit, Ana Calvo, it is one of the proposals “most attractive and desired by children, fathers and mothers and professionals, since any experience within the hospital becomes more bearable thanks to the visit of the dogs”.
Among the main advantages of this type of therapy is the reduction in the perception of pain and the increase in social interactions, the decrease in anxiety for some patients and the increase in parental satisfaction. Canine therapy sessions take place every 15 days and alternate with the rest of the programming of this unit.
Throughout this period, the spaces used by these dogs (properly selected and trained) have been expanded to provide unforgettable moments. Around 80 sessions have already been developed since the beginning, some virtually during the pandemic.
The dog that currently participates in this initiative and is the true protagonist of each visit is Bourbon, a trained Labrador who visits hospitalization areas, such as the Pediatric Oncohematology Unit, Pediatric Surgery, Neurology and long stays, and other spaces such as the Child blood collection. This year, a pilot experience has also been developed in adolescents with eating deficit disorder at Hospital Los Morales.
The hospital develops this project, known as ‘Footprints in the heart’, together with the Perruneando company, which arranges for a psychologist and canine therapist to provide therapy with full control and safety guarantees (includes veterinary surveillance, liability insurance and complies with the safety and hygiene protocol for hospital access).
It is expected that, starting in September, canine therapy can be extended to minors cared for in the day hospital of the Child and Youth Mental Health Unit (Los Morales Hospital), as well as to the children’s outpatient clinics that are currently located at the Carlos Castilla del Pino Specialty Center, Pediatric ICU and Pediatric Palliative Care at home.
Meanwhile, Ana Calvo has expressed that “this much-desired activity is an example of our Humanization strategy, with which we hope that the passage of families through the Reina Sofía is a positive experience and generates good memories.”
