WIGGLIN’ TAILS TO WANDER HALLS OF DRISCOLL
PET THERAPY FOR YOUNG PATIENTS & FAMILIES

GCHS Paws Up Program (Mikey) Visit
Thursday, October 2, 2003
1 p.m.
Driscoll Children's Hospital
3533 Alameda Ave., Corpus Christi

(Corpus Christi, TX) --- Animal-assisted activities and therapy changes people’s lives! Mikey, a black puppy from the Gulf Coast Humane Society Paws Up program will be wiggling his tail entertaining patients and their families in the halls of Driscoll Children's Hospital on October 2nd, 2003 at 1 p.m. An animal ambassador like Mikey is part of one of the many teams trained for the Pet Therapy Program being implemented at Driscoll.

They will offer the opportunity to give patients therapy through hands-on interaction and help increase patient motivation in psychological, physical, occupational, and speech therapy.

The Gulf Coast Humane Society-Paws Up Program is a Delta Society group affiliate. The humans and their animal teammates are all registered by Delta to provide animal-assisted activities (AAA) and animal–assisted therapy (AAT) through a unique process that ensures that the team has the special skills and aptitudes for working in health care settings. The registration process includes health and temperament screening and volunteer training. Delta Society is the world’s leading advocate for animal-assisted activities and therapy.

About Driscoll Children’s Hospital
“Improve the health of adults and you give them back their health …
Improve the health of children and you give them their life.”

Since opening its doors in 1953, Driscoll Children’s Hospital has been offering hope and healing to the children of South Texas for half a century. The facility is a 189-bed pediatric tertiary care center with pediatric board-certified specialists representing 19 medical and nine surgical specialties. Each year, more than 6,000 children are admitted for inpatient care, 5,000 for day surgery, and 50,000 for outpatient primary and specialty care, as well as 40,000 for emergency care, as the first South Texas hospital with emergency services exclusively for children. Additionally, Driscoll maintains a state-of-the-art ground/air transport team, 20-bed pediatric intensive care unit, 40-bed neonatal intensive care unit, and specialized medical outreach.

www.driscollchildrens.org

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