Clown Doctors are on the move, bringing smiles and laughter to regional areas of Australia as they head on tour.
Imagine being sick in hospital, in need of a laugh and a bit of music. That is the magic of Clown Doctors. Clown Doctors help patients through scary and tough circumstances through laughter and fun.
This week the Clown Doctors are on the move in regional Victoria. Dr Fizzy Whizzy and Dr Sunny have packed their ukuleles, red noses and every joke in the book into the Clowns Doctors van to bring their magic to Castlemaine Health on Wednesday 4 March.
The Clown Doctor program is provided by The Humour Foundation, an Australian charity dedicated to bringing the health benefits of humour to the community. “Clown Doctors inject hope and happiness into the lives of sick children”, said David Symons, Artistic Director of The Humour Foundation. “International research shows that laughter has both physiological and psychological benefits in recovery.”
“It has a positive effect on the heart rate and blood pressure, helps the immune system, and reduces pain and stress. It also creates bonds between people and helps them cope with difficult situations,” Mr Symons said.
Clown Doctors work in partnership with medical professionals to divert children during painful procedures, calm and distract in emergency, and improve the wellbeing of sick injured people in hospital. By parodying the hospital routine with jokes, songs, magic and play, Clown Doctors engage people at their bedside and help them to adapt to hospital life. ‘Red-nose’ transplants, ‘cat’ scans and funny bone examinations are all part of the show.
With generous support from the Moose Toys Foundation, Clown Doctors has been able to get the tour on the road. Belinda Gruebner, EVP Global Marketing for Moose Toys, said “At Moose Toys, we exist to make children happy! We have proudly supported the Clown Doctors for the past 10 years and are excited to see our mutual desire to support regional Australia come to life in the form of this tour. We believe this is the start of something magical and cannot wait to see the joy and happiness the Clown Doctors will bring to children in the coming weeks.”