The creation of the Ronald McDonald Family Room at the Aghia Sophia Children's Hospital is the first project of the charity Ronald McDonald House Charities Hellas (RMHC Hellas), which recently started its operation in Greece.
It is a space of hospitality that aims to provide a temporary shelter for families whose children are receiving treatment at the hospital. The Family Room will have overnight and resting areas in its premises, where families can rest while staying a few steps away from the wards where their children are hospitalized.
The Ronald McDonald House Charities has been in operation for nearly 50 years with a mission to promote the health and well-being of children and their families. Today, it provides more than 690 residential programs and medical services in 62 countries and territories. It impacts the lives of millions of children and their families as it provides more than 2.2 million overnight stays and hospitality, and more than 152,000 volunteers support its work around the world.
“We are very proud to have started the operation of Ronald McDonald House Charities in Greece, in order to provide a caring environment for children and their families”, says Mr. Yannis Apostolopoulos, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ronald McDonald House Charities Greece. “In our effort to define a program for Greece, working with the largest pediatric hospital in Athens, Aghia Sophia, was an obvious choice. Our first program is tailored to meet the needs of hospitalized children and their families and we hope to positively impact the many families who have children hospitalized at the hospital.”
As Daphne Tsakyrakis, Executive Director of Ronald McDonald House Charities Greece, notes, “Family rooms are widespread in pediatric hospitals around the world, as their leaders understand that supporting families helps provide high quality care for children. Family-centred care is a healthcare approach that is considered extremely important for the care of children, particularly those with serious conditions. This fully involves family members in healthcare so that they can make responsible decisions about the treatment and support services that the child and family receive.”
The first RMHC Family Room in Greece will be located in an unused property of 310 sqm located within the premises of the Aghia Sophia Children’s Hospital. The renovation of the space will be carried out by RMHC Hellas and is expected to be completed within 2024.
The Family Room will be available for daily use and will include kitchen and dining areas, private bathrooms, sleeping rooms, laundry facilities, a living room with TV, internet access, and there will also be three family suites for overnight stays. The Room will be used by families of children undergoing treatment at the Hospital, and the selection of families to stay overnight will be determined in coordination with the Hospital, based on vulnerability and needs criteria.
In the RMHC Family Room, parents will be able to take a short break from the hospital environment, have a meal or rest, take a shower and do laundry, or simply take a coffee break. The space will provide parents with the opportunity to relax and rest before returning to their child’s bedside.
About Ronald McDonald House Charities – Global Network
The charitable work of Ronald McDonald House Charities aims to keep the families of children receiving treatment together. By prioritizing and focusing on the health and well-being of children, RMHC chapters around the world operate mobile clinics, provide overnight accommodations and create hospitality structures within hospitals where families can rest and recuperate while remaining just steps away from the wards where their children are hospitalized.
Ronald McDonald House Charities was born in 1974 with the creation of the first Ronald McDonald House in Philadelphia, USA. The founding partner was the McDonald’s catering company, which has since supported RMHC’s mission and operations around the world.
