Medical and nursing staff at Leighton Hospital have thanked members of a Freemasons group for donating over 10,000 teddy bears for child patients.
The bears are given to poorly youngsters to comfort them while being treated at the emergency department at Leighton Hospital.
Cheshire Freemasons have donated more than 67,000 bears across Cheshire since 2006, and members visited the hospital to see for themselves how TLC (Teddy Loving Care) bears are used.
Barrie Lunt co-ordinates fundraising and distribution of the TLC bears across Cheshire, said: “We give the hospital a regular stock to comfort children.
“Freemasons nationwide have so far donated nearly a million TLC bears to hospitals all over Britain, and have brought comfort to many thousands of children bravely receiving treatment.”
Allison Taylor, senior paediatric nursing sister, said: “Children really do appreciate the teddies, at what can be quite a stressful time.
“Bears also benefit carers and nursing staff, as they can act as a distraction tool.”
Money used to buy the bears is raised by the sale of lapel badges in the shape of a teddy costing £2.
Every badge sold is enough to buy two cuddly teddies for child patients.
Excellent work from the funny handshake brigade.
Leighton Hospital have an easy policy. Just keep putting out positive press releases, even if, like this one, it is nothing they have achieved. Dont put out any negative press releases.
They know that soo called journalists are too lazy to do anything but copy press releases.
So the fact that Leighton Hospital has been flagged up nationaly as one of the very worst in the country goes un-reported.