A: Clowndoctor is a very special person professionally trained to work with young people of all ages who are experiencing hospital care, using the art of therapeutic clowning. The Clowndoctors are clown characters and they always visit in pairs. They are skilled in improvisation, non-verbal play, music, dance and puppetry. Clowndoctors tailor the experience to the individual child to provide an outlet for meaningful connection, communication, creativity, and play. Our visits are made to be accessible to all.Â
A: No! Clowndoctors respect and admire medical staff and love to wear a bright yellow doctor’s coat, but they are definitely not real doctors in the medical sense. They are professionally trained artists that use clowning in medical, health, play and educational environments.
It’s great when the real doctors join in! Being ridiculous together for a few moments helps us to remember that we are all just humans, doing our best in different ways to ease the struggle of the people we meet.
A: Therapeutic clowning means that a visit from us has a therapeutic effect. This effect could be reducing anxieties, isolation and boredom, or encouraging communication, social and emotional engagement and participation. Therapeutic clowning also means that our visits are unique, tailor made, playful and accessible to all regardless of needs. Â
A: Yes! Our Clowndoctors are experts in improvisation, non-verbal communication and intensive interaction. We encourage meaningful, developmental and inclusive play for all children, regardless of abilities, and our visits are unique to every child we meet.
A: The benefits of a visit from the Clowndoctors are:
- more experiences of being in control
- more opportunities for child-like imaginative play
- feel more positive about the environment
- have more opportunities to be immersed in a positive experience
- Families have more opportunities to see children be themselves
A: No! All Hearts & Minds practitioners are professional performers and are paid as such. Many of our artists are Artistic Directors of their own theatre companies, and frequently perform in theatre. Some have been known to make TV appearances! To be an effective therapeutic clown takes many hours of specific and ongoing training in clowning, improvisation techniques & music as well as in the various hospital environments in which we work. We are also trained in infection control, safeguarding, health conditions and treatments and reflective practice.Â