November 20, 2002 Student
News
Aggie Student
Volunteers Time in Romanian Hospital and Orphanage
From the Utah Statesman
(11/18/02)
Many people dream of going to far-away countries as a volunteer
in a hospital or orphanage. Caryn Bingham, a senior majoring
in family and human development, decided to make her dream of
service come true.
Bingham said she heard about the Orphans Around The World (OATW)
program in a class and immediately wanted to apply.
"I heard about it and thought, 'that's what I'm doing,'"
she said. "I always hear about people doing things like
that and think 'I should do it.' So I just decided that I would."
She volunteered in Brasov, Romania for three-and-one-half months
over the summer, working six hours a day in a children's hospital
and three hours a day in an orphanage.
Bingham went with three other college students — two
from Brigham Young University and one from Utah Valley State
College — through the OATW program.
The Spital de Copii, the hospital where the students served,
is the only one in Romania that uses the play therapy program,
something that was instituted by Dana Tananescu, a Romanian
who saw a need and changed hundreds of children's lives.
"Dana pretty much pushed her way in there and started
painting walls, which was unheard of because the Romanians are
very behind with things like that," Bingham said. "The
hospital I worked in was the only one in Romania with play therapy
because they are so far behind over there."
Play therapy is a different way of helping sick children cope
with illness, Tananescu said.
"Being sick is a big trauma for a child, and through play,
counseling and art, we are preparing children for the traumatic
events in the hospital: surgery, injections and all kinds of
treatments and for being separated from their parents,"
she said.
Tananescu started the program 13 years ago and hasn't looked
back.
"We had a very hard road to deal with because of the old
mentality where children were sick and not allowed to play,
they should be in bed all day, they were told many lies and
they did not know what it was going on with them and why,"
Tananescu said. "So we had to implement with the medical
stuff a new concept of care, a holistic care — both medical
and emotional.
"We are very proud to say that it's really working now!
We have a great collaboration with doctors and nurses. They
now ask us to work with a child because they are beginning to
understand emotional needs of children and they see that if
the child is prepared for the medical intervention or if the
child understands why he has to be in the hospital, then the
recovery is shorter and the child's collaboration with the medical
team is better," she said. "It is a very new thing
for our country, and it is really amazing that we are still
working."
To begin the program in Brasov, two English specialists lived
in Romania, and a comedy store in England has been sponsoring
it up until this year, providing money for toys and salaries,
Tananescu said.
The funding has ended, however, and the workers and children
at the hospital are doing everything they can to keep the program
going, including painting cards to sell, Bingham said.
"The hospital won't support them, the government won't
support them, and they need sponsors," she said. "They
even made and sold cards for money."
If sponsors are not found, the program will be canceled, Tananescu
said.
"The hospital is too poor to give us money for toys, so
if we can't find someone to help us, we'll have to give up the
program, which is a big shame," she said. "Also, we
have been being paid extra for the counseling program, which
will have to disappear. We need around $5,000 a year to keep
going."
But in spite of many challenges, the program continues to expand.
"We now have a counseling program for children who have
attempted suicide, and we have become more and more specialized
with certain diseases," Tananescu said. "I am working
with children with cancer, diabetes, blood disorders and attempted
suicide, and I love it.
"My favorite part is the fight with children's anxieties,
fears and emotional disturbances. It is fascinating to help
them release all of it, then sort it out, then cope with it,"
she said. "It is the biggest reward when a sick child understands
what's going on, moves forward, fights, smiles and is no longer
afraid of being in the hospital."
Tananescu said OATW is vital to keeping the play therapy program
running at the hospital.
"The program is very important for our children and for
us. The girls work very hard at the hospital and orphanage,
and the children progress a lot," she said. "These
girls keep up in touch with a fresh mentality about working
with children. There is no similar job in Romania, so we have
no one to teach us about changing professional experience."
Bingham said she loved the experience and didn't want to leave.
"The children were awesome, and they were definitely my
favorite part," she said. "The hardest part was leaving,
not just for good, but every day — knowing that the child
was not going to play again until the next morning when I came
back."
She spent most of her time with the children with special needs
because they were often neglected, she said. She also worked
with two-year-old children.
"Almost nobody went to see the disabled children except
to change their diapers, so I stayed in there with them a lot,"
she said.
Bingham said she wants to go back again and encourages anyone
interested to go.
The cost of the program is a $350 program fee, and participants
pay their own way. For more information, contact OATW at orphansaroundtheworld@hotmail.com.
Programs are available during the fall, spring and summer semesters.
By Katrina Cartwright; kcartwright@cc.usu.edu
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