A huge thank you to Boulder Media and Hasbro Toys for organising an amazing donation of toys to the children in the Daisy Unit, the Paediatric Programme in the National Rehabilitation Hospital (NRH).

Santa very kindly arrived to deliver the presents during their Christmas Party. These toys have brought great joy to the children during their stay in the NRH where Children spend on average 3 months here.

Additional toys donated will be used for new children who come to start their rehabilitation journey in the NRH, helping aid rehabilitation goals and used as part of play therapy.

Daisy Unit

Daisy unit is the new stand-alone Paediatric Family Centred Rehabilitation (Paeds) Unit, containing all required rehabilitation support services within one location in the NRH. Children come from all over Ireland & from referring hospitals such as Children’s Health Ireland at Crumlin, Temple Street and Tallaght Hospitals; Beaumont; and Cork University hospital neurosurgical units.

Thanks to fundraisers and donors we were able to provide funding support to facilitate the building and equipping of this new development.

Some areas within the Daisy Unit that fundraising supported include:

• Paediatric Therapy & Sensory Garden
• Multi-Sensory Therapy Room
• Adolescent Den
• Soft Play Room
• Mobile and Static Projection Systems
• Fully Accessible Paediatric Playground
• Golf Putting Range
• Variety of Music Therapy Equipment
• “The Playhab” Online Paediatric Therapeutic Resource for Young Children with a Brain Injury

About the Paediatric Programme

• The NRH cares for children and young people up to the age of 18.
• The unit is specifically designed to create an atmosphere and environment that is appropriate for children and young people.
• The patient’s bedrooms can accommodate one parent to stay overnight.
• On site school facility to enable children to continue with their education.
• The Day Patient and Outpatient Services all operate from the unit.  
• Family Centred Care is a key CARF standard for the Paediatric service.
• Parents are an integral part of a child’s ongoing care and rehabilitation and as such, an integral part of the paediatric team. Parents are generally still coming to terms with their child having acquired a serious life altering condition and necessitate supportive counselling, assistance and carer training.
• The team aims to integrate normal childhood activities, such as schooling and play into the child’s therapeutic rehabilitation programme.
• Much rehabilitation for younger children takes place through the medium of play and music therapy in order to facilitate the child’s maximum engagement with the programme.

Facts & Stats 2020

• Clinical Services include: Medical, Nursing, Clinical Psychology, Music Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, Speech & Language Therapy and more
• Reasons for attending:
  • Acquired brain injury:
    • Traumatic origin (traffic accidents, falls, assaults, sports injuries)
    • Non traumatic origin (tumour, stroke, infection)
  • Acquired spinal cord dysfunction
    • Traumatic origin
    • Non traumatic origin (transverse myelitis, tumour, gillian-barre syndrome)
  • Acquired and congenital limb absence requiring prosthetic intervention
  • Other acquired neurological conditions requiring specialist rehabilitation