The Hospital Hero app, which is intended to reduce anxiety and tension for children undergoing medical treatment, is finding its way to Dutch hospitals. The app was initially developed for children aged 4 to 10 to prepare for admission to the Willem-Alexander Children’s Hospital (WAKZ, part of the LUMC).
After the WAKZ, the app was tested in the Juliana Children’s Hospital, where some technical problems were solved. The pilots are so successful that they can also be used in other hospitals. There is great enthusiasm for this, the LUMC writes on its website. The app is tailored to specific situations in each hospital itself.
Care trip
Hospital Hero was conceived by two pediatric nurses from the WAKZ. In the app, children can already choose an animal at home to practice actions such as measuring and weighing together. Once in the hospital, the app offers a lot of distraction. For example, children can trace virtual animals via QR codes – which are hidden in the outpatient clinics. In Hospital Hero, the entire care journey of the child is central: not just the treatment room, but everything before and after, as the creators explain.