Give Joy

Impact Stories

From the bedside.

Four accounts from the people who were in the room — three Red Nose Doc supervisors and a child life specialist. They are unedited in substance and deliberately undramatic: this is what a visit looks like, told by the artists who do the work and the care teams who champion it.

Two Red Nose Docs stretch a tape measure between them in the Charlotte R. Bloomberg Children’s Center lobby.
Johns Hopkins Children’s Center

The Longest Hallway

Dr. Boots · Supervisor

Dr. Spats and Dr. Boots were scheduled to meet a long-term friend, M, to walk with her. PT was trying to get her to walk post-surgery as a requirement for discharge. We were late arriving. As we arrived, we were greeted by Mom in the hallway. She told us M was having a really bad day, and she doubted M would do any walking that day.

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Two Red Nose Docs either side of a Children’s National physician on the ward.
Children’s National Hospital

You Are My Sunshine

Dr. J.J. · Supervisor

Dr. Humana Humana and I were working the Oncology floor on this particular day. As we were making our rounds, I saw Mrs. H coming down the hall. Mrs. H is the mother of a boy who was six years old when he lost his battle to cancer three years ago.

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Two Red Nose Docs, one holding a ukulele, with a young patient wearing a red nose.
Cincinnati Children’s

Three Days a Week

Child Life Specialist · Outpatient Dialysis Unit

These families have to come to the hospital 3–5 days a week for 3–4 hours each day for treatment. Kids experience a lot on dialysis, from the discomfort of having a central line with tubes dangling from their chest to having to sit still for hours and then pain from getting their dressing changed weekly.

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Two Red Nose Docs strike a pose in a doorway with a young patient between them.
Harlem Hospital

The Senior Doctors

Dr. Ima Confused · Supervisor

The ED was packed, as it was so often this month, and while I was washing my hands, Dr. Yay! saw that in one of the rooms, a medical student was having a REALLY hard time getting a toddler to hold still enough so he could look into her ear. Dr. Yay! pulled me over to the room, and we entered, asking the medical student if we could help. “YES! PLEASE!” was his rather desperate response.

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Every one of these visits was paid for by someone.

Healthy Humor Red Nose Docs reach half a million children and families a year across twelve partner hospitals. None of it is billed to a family.

Give Joy
Johns Hopkins Children’s Center

The Longest Hallway

Dr. Boots · Supervisor

Dr. Spats and Dr. Boots were scheduled to meet a long-term friend, M, to walk with her. PT was trying to get her to walk post-surgery as a requirement for discharge. We were late arriving. As we arrived, we were greeted by Mom in the hallway. She told us M was having a really bad day, and she doubted M would do any walking that day. Mom was clearly frustrated and tired.

We went into the room. M immediately reprimanded us for being late — LOL! Dr. Boots responded that we had a good reason and passed it off to Dr. Spats to explain. Dr. Spats wove a long tale trying to explain our lateness. At one point he mentioned that numerous elevators passed us because they were full. Finally, an elevator arrived that had room only for Dr. Boots, but Dr. Spats solved that problem by climbing on Dr. Boots’ shoulders.

M perked up and said “Well, I’d really like to see that.” Dr. Spats didn’t miss a beat and said “We can’t do that in here — the room is too small.” Immediately M stood up, put her shoes on, grabbed her IV pole and led us to the hallway. Dr. Spats surveyed the scene and determined that the best place was half way down the hallway because of the lighting. When we got to the end of the hallway, Dr. Spats climbed up on Dr. Boots’ shoulders (after making eye contact to confirm that we really could do this, of course). M joined us as we all paraded around the unit.

Needless to say, M completed the walking required by PT and was discharged the next day!
Children’s National Hospital

You Are My Sunshine

Dr. J.J. · Supervisor

Dr. Humana Humana and I were working the Oncology floor on this particular day. As we were making our rounds, I saw Mrs. H coming down the hall. Mrs. H is the mother of a boy who was six years old when he lost his battle to cancer three years ago. As Mrs. H approached me, she had tears rolling down her cheeks and gave me a big hug. She stated that she was hoping to see us today. She then began to explain that she and her older son were there to ring the bell on the 3-year anniversary of H getting his wings. She asked us to please be there. I told her that we would not miss it.

Then she began to tell Dr. Humana Humana that another performer, Dr. Baldy, and I had been in the room with the staff three years before as everyone (about 25 staff members) was saying good-bye to H as he was going home for Hospice Care. I had played “You Are My Sunshine” on the ukulele, and everyone was singing and crying. She thanked me for doing that and said that moment was so moving that she will never forget it.

After Mrs. H moved on, Dr. Humana Humana and I really had to take a moment. I gave him more background on everything Mrs. H had said. He was very understanding. We made a few more room visits and then went to the bell ringing ceremony, which took place right at 12 noon. Mrs. H thanked all of us for being there and for all the good work that they and we do. And then she and her older son rang the bell. Mrs. H then gave everyone hugs and another round of thanks.
Cincinnati Children’s

Three Days a Week

Child Life Specialist · Outpatient Dialysis Unit

I am a child life specialist at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital on the outpatient dialysis unit. I have been working with Healthy Humor for the past few years in dialysis and have seen what a positive impact they have on the patients and families going through hemodialysis. These families have to come to the hospital 3–5 days a week for 3–4 hours each day for treatment. Kids experience a lot on dialysis, from the discomfort of having a central line with tubes dangling from their chest to having to sit still for hours and then pain from getting their dressing changed weekly. Some kids feel light headed and need oxygen during dialysis and others have cramping in their hands or feet. Hemodialysis can be traumatic for a child, from the littlest baby up to older teenagers.

Having the distraction of a smiling face telling funny jokes or singing songs can be so healing. Our kids look forward to the visits from Healthy Humor, a teenager memorizing new jokes and the excitement when they get to tell their clown friends and toddlers smiling and laughing at their friendly puppet who visits and watching friends play the ukulele. And a fussy infant who stops crying and appears mesmerized by hearing and watching Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.

Healthy Humor clowns help to reduce the trauma that patients and families experience in the dialysis unit. They support our patients, families, and staff that spend day after day at the hospital doing hard things. Having programs like Healthy Humor make such an impact in the lives of these families, and the staff that care for them. They bring smiles and stop tears. I am so appreciative to our team of Healthy Humor clowns and love what they bring to the dialysis unit.
Harlem Hospital

The Senior Doctors

Dr. Ima Confused · Supervisor

The ED was packed, as it was so often this month, and while I was washing my hands, Dr. Yay! saw that in one of the rooms, a medical student was having a REALLY hard time getting a toddler to hold still enough so he could look into her ear. Dr. Yay! pulled me over to the room, and we entered, asking the medical student if we could help. “YES! PLEASE!” was his rather desperate response.

We began singing a little tune, that took away her tears and had introduced bubbles to the child’s delight. The young doctor took another try at looking in the ear. The smile went away, and big-time tears came. I asked the doctor if he could look in my ear, and when he did, I started to giggle, which made Dr. Yay! giggle, and as the two of us were giggling away, the doctor went in and saw what he needed to see in the little one’s ear.

After we all left the room, the medical student could not thank us enough. It made me think how we often joke about how we are the senior doctors, and in this case, we really were — coming to the aid of a “newbie” in the ED. And, as always, it was nice to be considered part of the team.