A little patient drives the toy car to the operating room. (Screenshot photo/Pear Video)
A hospital in Central China has come up with a cute way to ease the nerves of children heading to the operating room: the kids drive themselves up to the door of the surgery.
Chen Lingyun, head nurse of the operating room of the hospital in Weihui, Henan Province, told Pear Video that being wheeled into the operating room while lying on a gurney that's being pushed by strangers makes the young patients nervous.
"To keep our little patients from getting upset and crying, we spent 300 yuan ($45) on a mini electric toy car and we let the children drive to the operating room," Chen said. The staff assembled the little car themselves.
A video posted on social media shows a smiling child in a hospital gown driving a little red electric car down a hallway and into the operating room, while being followed by a hospital orderly.
Chen said children used to burst into tears when they got to the door of the operating room but now they often wave goodbye to their families with a smile.
"The car makes them feel like they're playing a game instead of going under the knife," said Chen. "It also relaxes them because they feel more in control of the situation, and that will help aid their recovery."
Netizens complimented the hospital staff. "It makes me feel warm even though it's a scary hospital," one of netizens wrote on Sina Weibo.
