“The Smile of the Child” awarded at BRAVO SUSTAINABILITY AWARDS 2018 for its action “Pediatric Care at Home” – Kaiti Papapostolou”
18 December 2018
PRESS RELEASE
Athens, 18 December 2018
“The Smile of the Child” awarded at BRAVO SUSTAINABILITY AWARDS 2018 for its action “Pediatric Care at Home” - Kaiti Papapostolou”
On the occasion of BRAVO SUSTAINABILITY AWARDS 2018, held on Wednesday 11 December 2018 at Athens Music Hall, “The Smile of the Child” was awarded for its action “Pediatric Care at Home” – Kaiti Papapostolou”. The action begun in 2017 by “The Smile of the Child” in cooperation with the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and the 3rd Pediatric Clinic of the Hippocrates Hospital. It is worthwhile to mention that the respective action is implemented in the Attica region since 2010.
The award belongs to the “Bravo ΙnAction” category of Cooperation, whereas the “Pediatric Care at Home” – Kaiti Papapostolou” is contributing to the realization of the UN Sustainable Development Goal 3 on "Ensuring healthy lives and promoting the well-being at all ages".
The Pediatric Care at Home provides individualized care at home for children with serious health problems the majority of whom are unable to move.
More specifically, through a specialized scientific team of doctors, nursery staff, physiotherapists, social worker and psychologists, “The Smile of the Child” offers:
● scheduled door-to-door visits from a doctor, nurse, physiotherapist, social worker, psychologist
● training to caregivers (parents or guardians) by the team of the program on the proper care of the child at home
● transportation and hospitalization of the patient to the hospital regardless of on-call duty restraints
● prescription of drugs and medical materials
The action supports children who need long-term medical treatment, children with serious respiratory failures, children with neuro-skeletal problems in need of mechanical support, children with cystic fibrosis and children with oncological problems. Among the main goals and benefits of the actions are:
● Better quality of life for children with serious health problems and their families
● Supportive assistance to the family environment
● Proper training to parents, reduction of the risk of intra-hospital infections for children, less hassle for children and families from the frequent transfers to and from hospital
● Reduction of calls to the public ambulance service of EKAV
● Facilitating the work of doctors and the nursery staff who request the contribution of the Organization
● Relieve crowding at Hospitals and better utilization of hospital beds
It is worthwhile to mention that 140 children received the services of the program in 2017 through 1.158 visits of doctors, physiotherapists, and nurses.
The program is implemented in the framework of the Memorandum of Cooperation between “The Smile of the Child”, the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and the 3rd Pediatric Clinic of the Hippocrates Hospital of Thessaloniki.
“The Smile of the Child” is awarded from Bravo Awards for a second consecutive year. In 2017 the Organization received two awards, namely one for its nationwide actions in the field of preventive medicine and the second one for the participation of its volunteers to its work for children. In addition, the Organization received an honorary distinction for its already existing actions and provided services for every child victim of violence.
