Laughter, The Wonder Drug
The Age
Wednesday September 17, 2003
When these doctors hit the wards at the Royal Children's, the patients ache all over - from merriment
As clown doctor Dr Doctor ("You can see me twice for a second opinion," he explains) makes his way through Melbourne's Royal Children's Hospital, the children gravitate towards him.
The sight gags soon have them in fits of laughter.
There are jokes, too: The woman touched her right knee with her index finger and yelled: "Ow, that hurts." Then she touched her left cheek and again yelled: "Ouch! And that hurts." Then she touched her right earlobe. "Ow, even that hurts", she cried.
The doctor checked her thoughtfully for a moment and told her his diagnosis: "You have a broken finger."
On the day the MPG team is there, Dr Doctor is the Pied Piper. Visiting children are ready to follow him and co-clown Dr Fairy Floss from floor to floor.
As they enter a ward there are smiles all around - from children, parents and the hospital staff.
The clown doctors revel in all the attention, but not for themselves.
Dr Doctor says: "I trained as an actor (real name Leon Teague, 38, an actor and musician who has appeared on shows such as Neighbours, Blue Heelers and as a criminal on ABC-TVs Janus) and this is one of my most satisfying roles.
"A lot of other acting is egocentric - a case of, 'Look at me, aren't I good!' With clown doctors, you make the child the star, the king ... you're the court jester.
"What you're doing feels so good and the ego takes a back seat. It feels so good to work around children, their energy is so pure.
"I sing nursery rhymes with the children and I get them wrong - 'Baa, Baa red fish have you any cheese' - so that they can happily shout their corrections. They love that."
Dr Doctor's repertoire includes plenty of music. "I use the harmonica, ukulele and all sorts of little musical instruments and noises in the hospital," he says.
"There are some children you can't relate to any way but at a musical level ... ones who can't speak, toddlers. With them, it's nice to play gentle little tunes on the ukulele or mouth organ. You know they feel it inside."
The clown doctor principle is simple: Laughter is the wonder drug.
Medically, it is widely recognised that laughter reduces stress hormones. The levels drop not only during the time of laughter but afterwards as well.
The Australian co-founder of the clown doctors Dr Peter Spitzer, better known to children as Dr Fruitloop, says: "There is no question about the positive psychology of laughter. We know it works and we are told that all the time."
Laughter can reduce pain by releasing endorphins, relaxing the muscles and boosting the immune system by increasing the level of T-cells and lowering serum cortisol levels.
Dr Spitzer and co-founder actor Jean-Paul Bell were inspired to set up the charity organisation The Humour Foundation six years ago by Patch Adams, the American doctor who risked his career to bring laughter to children and became known worldwide
when his story was told in the film starring Robin Williams.
Clown doctors are mostly highly trained performers who usually work in pairs. They are paid by The Humour Foundation.
"It's the job of the clown doctor to disturb the ward," Dr Spitzer says.
"We need to improvise, so that a standard clown doctor procedure - a red nose transplant - can take from a minute to 20 minutes.
"Their antics can change the mood of children who are dying, scared or anxious,
as well as bring smiles to the faces of staff.
"The doctors do ward rounds and we do clown rounds. We reduce anxiety and pain. It's seizing the moment. The creative possibilities exist all the time.
"We love it when we get a doctor in a lift with us because we have a captive audience and can do a quick health check.
"Clown doctors are aware, however, that laughter is exercise, and sometimes they need to be careful. For example, we need to tone it down with asthmatics."
Clown doctors visit the Royal Children's Hospital four days a week, but have been as far afield as Afghanistan and East Timor.
One of their aims is to parody the hospital routine. This helps children feel less traumatised by medical procedures.
At the Royal Children's, Doctors Doctor and Fairy Floss often start their day in the burns ward, where scared or anxious children can need diverting from what lies ahead.
Dr Doctor, a clown doctor of five years, enjoys the variety a hospital can offer, from emergency waiting rooms to intensive care.
"A typical day can start with clinics, like pathology and burns, where kids are getting bandages taken off or having blood samples taken. We are a good distraction during these unhappy times," he says.
"Sometimes us coming through the hospital or just playing a happy tune can change the atmosphere.
"I have never had a job where you can feel love like this ... where you're sharing love, in a way."
His partner in fun Dr Fairy Floss adds that parents are a key focus for laughter, especially those who are far from home, have other children they see little of, and spend most of their waking day living with a sick child.
Dr Fairy Floss, real name Clare Bartholomew, 33, (who has just returned from performing at the Edinburgh Festival in the Melbourne Comedy Festival award-winning production The Concert) says being a clown doctor is like being on a roller coaster.
"It depends who you meet. That's why you need good listening skills. You feel your way through the day. It's like having antennae.
"This means if a raucous time is had in one room, the clowns need to gather themselves and settle down before moving on. One never knows what is behind the next door."
On a recent visit, Dr Fairy Floss met a small, withdrawn girl, with some fairy wings in her room. She says: "I talked about my wings, and the fact I'd never met anyone else with wings. She sat up and said, 'I have wings, too'.
"We stayed for a while before leaving.
The girl's mother followed us into the corridor. She said, 'My daughter hasn't spoken for three days. Thank you.'
"We can be silly and have fun, but every now and again something like that happens and we know that we are doing good work."
• There are five clown doctors in Melbourne but the charity is looking for sponsors to expand its laughter network, which includes recent rounds at the paediatric department
at Monash Medical Centre. For donations to The Humour Foundation or further information, phone 1300 666 890, see the website humorfoundation.com.au or write to PO Box 804, Avalon Beach, NSW 2107.
© 2003 The Age