Everton players bring Christmas cheer to Alder Hey
Players used a special robot to be able to safely talk to the children and 'hand out' presents.
Everton's first team players have still managed to put smiles on the faces of children at Alder Hey this Christmas, despite the on-going Coronavirus pandemic.
The annual visit went ahead in a slightly different format this year, with Blues players Seamus Coleman, Mason Holgate, Andre Gomes, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Michael Keane, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Tom Davies, Ben Godfrey, and Jordan Pickford using specialist robot telemedicine equipment and software to take part in virtual ward visits, hand out presents virtually, and bring smiles to the young Alder Hey patients, many of whom will be spending Christmas in hospital.
The Everton visit was the first time the robot technology has been used non-clinically at Alder Hey, with the hospital first using it during the pandemic to allow for accurate, remote clinical decision-making without a clinician having to be in the room.
It was also used before the pandemic to ensure that neonatal babies cared for by both Alder Hey and Liverpool Women’s Hospitals were provided with the best possible care.
Nathan Askew, Chief Nursing Officer, said:
“We knew that making this year’s Christmas visit happen would be a challenge, but we also knew that everyone involved would do whatever they could to ensure it went ahead. It wouldn’t be Christmas without our player visits, and it gave a real lift to our children, families and staff.”
Everton Captain Seamus Coleman said:
“In an ideal world we would have gone to the hospital ourselves and seen all the kids. It is something we have really enjoyed over the years, because you really do put a smile on their faces.
“Thanks to the help of Alder Hey’s technology we were still able to have a conversation with the kids through video – it was different, but the kids seemed to enjoy it. Hopefully it was a nice surprise for them.
“As players it is something we should never take for granted - being given the opportunity to speak to our fans, because that’s what this football club has always been about - the fans - especially when they are going through tough times, like some of the kids that we met this week. We hope we helped put a smile on people’s faces, that’s what it’s all about.”
Alongside the ward visits, Everton players also sent video messages for Alder Hey to share with patients during their Christmas light switch on virtual event.