Hello Kitty hospital

A Hello Kitty-themed maternity and pediatric hospital has opened in Yuanlin, Taiwan. The small 30-bed facility is authorized by Sanrio. From Reuters (Christine Lu photo):

Director Tsai Tsung-chi said he hopes the white, mouthless cat that is one of the world's most recognisable characters will ease the pain and fear associated with childbirth and being admitted into hospital.

"I wish that everyone who comes here, mothers who suffer while giving birth and children who suffer from an illness, can get medical care while seeing these kitties and bring a smile to their faces, helping forget about discomfort and recover faster," he told Reuters.

"Hello baby! Hello Kitty welcomes Taiwan newborns" and photos (Thanks, Lindsay Tiemeyer!)

David Pescovitz is Boing Boing's co-editor/managing partner. He's also a research director at Institute for the Future. On Instagram, he's @pesco.

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wolfiesma

A hairdresser once told me she got stopped by TSA because she had a hello kitty suitcase. Supposedly hk is a drug thing and so they thought she might have something which, of course she didn’t, but why is hk associated with drug culture? Please enlighten.
EH

The thing is, the Hello Kitty part is only the nice part of the hospital. The operating rooms and Emergency Room are sponsored by Mori Chack.
Takuan

http://www.supernaturale.com/img/articles/84/700.jpg
ChiaLynn

But… I’m afraid of Hello Kitty.
wolfiesma

@10
Ohhh, that I understand.
Fungelstein

#16, sometimes if there is something wrong with the baby, it’ll be placed under observation in the nursery by the doctors and nurses. Sometimes they are placed there to give mothers a slight break.

Though, I was wondering, if I was having a boy, could I ask the doctor to wear a Pochacco apron? Could I even ask for a different Sanrio character? My favorite is Cinnamoroll.

Yeah, I’m a big Sanrio nut.
Tubman

@#3, James: What happens is you get a 10% discount voucher for one of these.
El Mariachi

@ Takuan:

I suspect it’s the association with candy ravers.
El Mariachi

Er, @Wolfiesma, that is.
jamesey

That’s cute, but if you want something more “freaky,” try the Cabbage Patch Hospital in Georgia.

http://www.cabbagepatchkids.com/Cart_Pages/Tour/02_stork_sign.html
Takuan

Dear Simon:

Sometimes there are complications at birth. This can mean the newborn must be on intra-venous medication, oxygen and other therapies to carry them through the crisis. These can be more safely done,or only done, in the controlled environment of a gloved incubator box. There is more protection from infectious agents as well that could cause secondary problems in a vulnerable infant,

The touch of a parent is critical of course. Any human touch. That is why, if you visit a special care nursery, you will see many people sitting beside tbe incubator boxed babies with their hands resting on the sleeping child. The attendant nurses also take care to give as much skin stimulation and tactile sensation as they can as well. If you talk to them privately, they will acknowledge that some exceptional ones seem to have “healing hands” that help infants thrive -
though this is insider lore that is never openly claimed.

If you look around a special care unit for neonates, you will see a whole range from the totally healthy on precautionary measures to premature births to specific, serious medical conditions. All of them have anxious parents that wish to be with them and visit as much as geography,livelihoods, hospital policies and their own health permits.

With good luck and good care they will all be with their mothers soon.
Pipenta

I have no mouth, but I must scream.
Takuan

can’t sleep, Kitty will eat me?
Antinous

Oh, for a minute there I thought that Hello Kitty herself was on life support, desperately clinging to mortal existence. No such luck.
wolfiesma

El Mariachi,
It’s all coming back to me now, thank you.

Jamesy,
First of all, someone needs to tell them Cleveland is in Ohio. Then, they need the talk about where babies come from. I nominate Takuan.
edgore

@Antinous – I guess her breathing tube would have to be inserted nasally…
James

First thing that comes to my mind with a “Hello Kitty”-themed hostpital is: What happens when things go horribly, horribly wrong?

What happens when complications lead to emergency surgery, and the doctors fight vallantly for hours, but to no avail. A visibly shaken surgeon approaches a nervous man in the waiting room and pulls him aside. He tells the man that they were unable to save the child.

Three months later, a man and his wife are walking through a department store and they see a young girl wearing a Hello Kitty tee-shirt. The man weeps uncontrollably as two images flash into his mind: The daughter never had, and the outline of Hello Kitty on the doctor’s blood-covered smock.

—
(Sidenote to the above: I am a terrible person.)
Simon Lin

Why are the babies not with their moms? I think newborns care more about mother’s touch than hello kitty.