National Taiwan University (NTU) Children’s Hospital yesterday released a picture book designed to help children overcome their fears by depicting the hospital as a fantastical world to explore.
The book, titled National Taiwan University Children’s Hospital Wimmelbook (台大兒童醫院多多書), was created by the NTU Children’s Health Foundation in collaboration with publisher Aeroship and illustrator Sun Hsin-yu (孫心瑜), the first Taiwanese to win an award at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair.
A wimmelbook is a fully illustrated book without words that employs full-spread drawings with abundant detail meant for a child to explore and make their own discoveries.
Photo: Chiu Chih-jou, Taipei Times
Many children feel uncomfortable in hospitals as most have never experienced them before, said Frank Lu (呂立), director of the hospital’s pediatric pulmonary and critical care medicine division and convener of the foundation’s child-friendly healthcare project.
“Getting an ultrasound or EEG [electroencephalogram] does not hurt, but as they are unfamiliar with it, children feel afraid,” he said.
The wimmelbook could help familiarize children with hospitals and medical procedures to better prepare them for when they visit a real hospital, he said.
Many children with terminal illnesses wonder why they are different from their peers and cannot do the same things, Lu said, adding that they sometimes even develop depression.
However, through the book’s characters, children can see a reflection of themselves, he said.
They can better understand that “treatment is a ritual to promote health, not a scary word,” Lu added.
NTU Children’s Hospital continues to be a pioneer of child-friendly medicine, Lu said.
From spatial design and expressive art therapy, to counseling and calming techniques, the hospital keeps seeking positive ways to help sick children, he said.
Sun said this was her first time working with a hospital.
When coming up with characters and choosing colors, she said she tried especially hard to appeal to children, and hopes that the book will help kids develop a better perspective on health.
While Europe and the US already have many wimmelbooks about hospitals and healthcare, this is the first in Asia, foundation executive secretary Liu Ming-yu (劉明侑) said.
The book represents a “new milestone” in the nation’s efforts to create more child-friendly healthcare, Liu added.
Children’s book author Chan Wang-fan (粘忘凡) and the Dr Rednose Association introduced the book at the release event in Taipei, which also featured a video from actress and model Lin Chi-ling (林志玲).
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