Clown care

A clown care troupe at service at the hospital Bambino Gesù in Italy.

Clown Care, also known as hospital clowning, is a program in health care facilities involving visits from specially trained clowns. They are colloquially called "clown doctors" which is a trademarked name in several countries. These visits to hospitals have been shown to help in lifting patients' moods with the positive power of hope and humor. There is also an associated positive benefit to the staff and families of patients.

Background

Patch Adams, considered the first hospital clown, started being a hospital clown in the 1970s. He was portrayed in the 1998 film Patch Adams by Robin Williams, bringing attention to hospital clowning.

Professional Clown Doctors began working in hospitals in 1986 under a program called the Big Apple Circus Clown Care Unit, which was started by Michael Christensen in New York City. Clown Doctor programs now operate in every state in Australia, New Zealand, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Israel, South Africa, Hong Kong, Brazil, Belarus, Taiwan and all over Europe and in some parts of India.

Purpose

Clown Doctors attend specifically to the psycho-social needs of the hospitalized child but in some hospitals they also visit adults. They parody the hospital routine to help children adapt to their surroundings, they also distract from and demystify painful or frightening procedures. The atmosphere of fun and laughter can help children forget about the illness and the stress for a moment.

Clown Doctors use techniques such as magic, music, storytelling and other clowning skills to empower children with doses of fun that help them deal with the range of emotions they may experience while in hospital: fear, anxiety, loneliness, boredom.

According to Tan, Metsälä, and Hannula, "Clown care creates a positive emotional state, promotes interaction between parents and child, and fosters affirmative environmental conditions."

Clowning has also been used with older people who have dementia.

Research

Hospital clowning reduces stress and anxiety for children who are in hospitals, as well as for their parents.

Research on the physiological health benefits of laughter has been conducted for decades and continues to be carried out by medical physicians internationally. There is also a growing group of researchers that are exploring the psychological benefits of laughter, and specifically the work of Clown-Doctors.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Battrick, Cath; Glasper, Edward Alan; Prudhoe, Gill; Weaver, Katy (2007). "Clown Humour: The Perceptions of Doctors, Nurses, Parents and Children". Journal of Children's and Young People's Nursing. 1 (4). MA Healthcare Ltd: 174–179. doi:10.12968/jcyn.2007.1.4.24403. ISSN 2052-2886.
  2. 1 2 Farrell, Melinda. "History of Clowning". Humour Foundation. Archived from the original on 2017-01-05. Retrieved 2017-01-14.
  3. ↑ Mora, Jim (July 14, 2009). "Clown Doctors". Radio New Zealand National.
  4. ↑ "紅鼻子醫生 Dr.Rednose – 台灣唯一專業中立的小丑醫生組織" (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Retrieved 2020-10-12.
  5. ↑ Nuttman-Shwartz, Orit; Scheyer, Rachel; Herzl, Tzioni (2010). Seon Lee, Ji (ed.). "Medical Clowning: Even Adults Deserve a Dream". Social Work in Health Care. 49 (6). doi:10.1080/00981380903520475.
  6. ↑ Tener, Dafna; Lev-Wiesel, Rachel; Lang-Franco, Nessia; Ofir, Shoshi (2010). "Laughing Through This Pain: Medical Clowning During Examination of Sexually Abused Children: An Innovative Approach". Journal of Child Sexual Abuse. 19 (2): 128–140. doi:10.1080/10538711003622752. PMID 20390783.
  7. ↑ Vagnoli, Laura; Caprilli, Simona; Robiglio, Arianna; Messeri, Andrea (2005). "Clown Doctors as a Treatment for Preoperative Anxiety in Children: A Randomized, Prospective Study". Pediatrics. 116 (4): 563–567. doi:10.1542/peds.2005-0466. PMID 16199685.
  8. ↑ Golan, G; Tighe, P; Dobija, N; Perel, N; Keidan, I (2009). "Clowns for the Prevention of Preoperative Anxiety in Children: A Randomized Controlled Trial". Pediatric Anesthesia. 19 (3): 262–266. doi:10.1111/j.1460-9592.2008.02903.x. PMID 19143948.
  9. ↑ Tan, Amil Kusain Perez Jr.; Metsälä, Eija; Hannula, Leena (2014). "Benefits and barriers of clown care: A qualitative phenomenographical study of parents with children in clown care services". The European Journal of Humour Research. 2 (2): 10 pp. doi:10.7592/EJHR2014.2.2.tan. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  10. ↑ Roberts, Sara-Jane; Luckett, Tim; Ivynian, Serra; DiGiacomo, Michelle (January 2026). "Elder Clowning Interventions for Persons With Dementia in Long-Term Care: A Systematic Review and Metasynthesis of Qualitative Research". Dementia. 25 (1). London, England: 192–214. doi:10.1177/14713012251366738. ISSN 1741-2684. PMC 12701092. PMID 41387393.
  11. ↑ Sridharan, Kannan; Sivaramakrishnan, Gowri (October 2016). "Therapeutic clowns in pediatrics: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials". European Journal of Pediatrics. 175 (10): 1353–1360. doi:10.1007/s00431-016-2764-0. ISSN 1432-1076. PMID 27605131.
  12. ↑ Lopes-Júnior, Luís Carlos; Bomfim, Emiliana; Olson, Karin; Neves, Eliane Tatsch; Silveira, Denise Sayuri Calheiros; Nunes, Michelle Darezzo Rodrigues; Nascimento, Lucila Castanheira; Pereira-da-Silva, Gabriela; Lima, Regina Aparecida Garcia (2020-12-16). "Effectiveness of hospital clowns for symptom management in paediatrics: systematic review of randomised and non-randomised controlled trials". BMJ. 371 m4290. Clinical research ed. doi:10.1136/bmj.m4290. ISSN 1756-1833. PMC 7737653. PMID 33328164.
  13. ↑ "Nicklaus Childrens, Big Apple Circus Clown Care® Celebrates 15 Years of Bringing Smiles to Hospitalized Children". Nicklaus Children's Hospital. November 4, 2015. Retrieved 2025-03-07.
  14. ↑ Alberto Dionigi. "Clown as interpreters of emotions" (PDF). P.A.T. Group, Department of Psychology, University of Bologna. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-10-18.
  15. ↑ "Red Noses, The first Clowndoctor 'on a visit' with RED NOSES, Michael Christensen". Red Noses. Archived from the original on 2018-08-14. Retrieved 2016-10-17.
  16. ↑ Melvin, Glenn; Hofmann, Jovell Ling; Pavlou, Christine; Lu, Sinh; Verstandig, Stephanie; Taylor, Ashleigh; Desilva, Deandra; Cameron, Lauren; Evans, Subhadra (2025-02-01). "The Impacts of a Clown Doctor Program on an Adolescent Psychiatric Unit: A Mixed Methods Investigation". Child Psychiatry & Human Development. 56 (1): 142–152. doi:10.1007/s10578-023-01545-6. ISSN 1573-3327. PMC 11828834. PMID 37227620.

Further reading