SiFly health and education

Children’s Ward Doncaster Royal Infirmary

The core of our work is about improving health using music. We were asked to return to the children’s ward to support young people and their families who are in difficult and challenging situations.

As a parent who has had to deal with having a couple of children in hospital over the years I have an understanding of how distressing it can be.

Music can help with reducing anxiety when operations and procedures are on the horizon.

Music making can play a key part in building friendships and can help cure the boredom of being stuck in hospital.

Music can in some cases aid in pain reduction by up to 40%, although a degree of knowledge and experience is needed to be successful.

The video above is of staff members experiencing a taste of what the kids had done, it is so fulfilling to see smiles on faces.

Thanks to Jill Edwards for inviting us back and we are looking forward to seeing you again on the 6th of December.

SiFly health and education

The ME-Project

A quick selfie!!

I have always been reluctant to share the awesome!!! work of The ME – Project. I have been working with them over the past couple of years with their Artfully Adapting programme.

It is a targeted programme which practically highlights artistic activities to support specific areas of young people’s lives. I always commend the participants for just turning up. The difficult part of the work for us, is sharing with the public just how much fun it is, while respecting confidentiality of the attendees.

When parents say to their kids “hey go down and try it” it must fill them with dread as they don’t know what they are walking into. I think everyone who joins is pleasantly surprised. The facilities are awesome and I always look forward to returning for a chocolate cookie, they always get the really nice ones.

Kat, Paige and the team are like a family. I think what has made it work so well is that they do it like us, they carry the deep knowledge and experience, which they keep inside like a book on a shelf, while being more focused in the moment of having fun and engaging.

So far every participant has enjoyed it, we have had a lot of fun, and at one point last night we had a 5 minute laughing fit with tears rolling down cheeks as I looked back and shared one of my stories from my school days.

The latest 6 week programme to support 12 to 16 year olds may still have a place left as I write this, check below for details.