Use of clowns to aid recovery in hospitalised children

Abstract

AIM: To examine how children in hospital perceive their meetings with clowns. METHODS: An interview study with ten children and an observation study of 12 children were carried out at two different hospitals employing clowns in southern Sweden. FINDINGS: Analyses of the interviews produced four main thematic categories: the clowns' attributes, feelings that the clowns provoked, children's thoughts about the clowns' visit, and one negative experience. Analyses of the observations produced two main categories: clowns' interplay based on initiatives from children, and children's reactions to the event. The children experienced their hospital stay as being fun, which helped them feel more at home. A visit from the clowns was evidently important for the children. CONCLUSION: The clowns brought play and humour into the hospital and this gave children the opportunity to focus on something other than their illness, aiding their wellbeing and recovery.