4 December, 2007
From The Ward To Water –Paediatric Staff Invite Patients To Take Part In Boat Race
Christchurch Hospital Paediatric staff will be swapping ward rounds for canoeing on the Avon River in fancy dress when
the department holds its Annual Paediatric Boat Race this Friday 7 December.
The Paediatric Department has invited children who have undergone treatment there this year, and their families, to
take part in the annual event. Staff will wear fancy dress and paddle in canoes, donated by the Antigua Boatsheds and
Café, up the river while trying to avoid being pelted with a range of materials the children have been invited to bring
to throw at them, including flour and water bombs and rotten fruit.
Paediatric Registrar and Event Organiser Hadley Watson says the event is being resurrected this year after a break last
year. Before last year it was held every year for about a decade.
He says because many of the children who will take part in the event are chronically ill, they visit the Paediatric
Department regularly. The event will be a chance for staff to offer former and current patients some fun times in the
lead up to Christmas. “It’s a good chance for the kids to get their own back on the staff and it’s always a lot of fun,”
he says.
ENDS