The Juravinski Hospital in Ontario, Canada is an unusual place. Even if at first glance the hospital does not differ from its own kind, when you enter its wards and the emergency room, you notice the difference right away. And all thanks to its visitors.
Often, hospitals allow only relatives and friends to visit patients, and, depending on the patient's condition, the visit time can be quite severely limited.
However, in the Canadian hospital Jurawinsky, visiting patients is looked at in a completely different way. There is a program Zachary’s Paws for Healing ("Zachary's Healing Paws"), within which not only relatives, but also … beloved pets are allowed to visit patients!
The program was founded by Donna Jenkins, who was inspired by her 25-year-old nephew Zachary. The young man struggled with Hodgkin's lymphoma, and his own pets helped him the most during treatment.
“Zachary was in the hospital for many weeks and was very sick after the stem cell transplant,” Jenkinson says. "One day he asked for his dog Chase to be brought to him. We secretly escorted the dog to the intensive care unit, and the effect that this meeting had on Zach was incredible."
Having promised Zach to launch an official program that would allow sick owners to spend time with their beloved pets, Donna kept her word - on September 15, 2015, the Otario hospital received its first four-legged visitor.
"When patients see their pets, their vital signs improve markedly, the feeling of isolation disappears, depression goes away. For them, a beloved dog or cat is a living reminder that there is always a reason to fight for life," Jenkinson says.
Animal visits are allowed on a daily basis and last up to one hour. Dogs and cats are thoroughly washed before entering the hospital, and are not allowed to visit other patients.
