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The Minister of Health Mr. Michael Damianou and the Deputy Minister of Culture Dr. Vasiliki Kassianidou spoke about cooperation between the Ministry of Health and the Deputy Ministry of Culture, in order to use culture as a means for the promotion of health and the well-being of patients.
The Minister of Health together with the Deputy Minister of Culture visited today at noon the Paediatric Oncology - Paediatric Haematology and the Paediatric Clinic of the Archbishop Makarios III Hospital, where they delivered books to the library and attended the reading of a children's book by the award-winning author Despina Irakleous.
In her remarks to reporters, the Deputy Minister of Culture said: "It is an initiative that we are launching together to bring culture to hospitals, that is, to bring books, literature, theatrical performances, actions, to help patients overcome whatever problem they have faster, offering them a way out." She noted that this action is being carried out first at the Archbishop Makarios III Hospital in the Paediatric Oncology - Paediatric Haematology and also at the Paediatric Clinic.
The Deputy Minister said that the initiative was prompted by an exhibition that the children of the Paediatric Oncology Department had made at the House of Representatives. "We listened to their request," Dr. Kassianidou noted, adding that "so the Deputy Ministry came to respond to this call."
The Deputy Minister of Culture said that she sought the contribution of the "Cyprus Publishers Association" and the "Association of Children's Book Writers" to launch a series of actions that will help the children hospitalized at Makarios Hospital.
"We have brought books, some of which have won literary awards for children's books, others were nominated and many others were donated to us for this purpose," he said, noting that the "Children's Book Writers Association" will come once a month and bring a children's book author to read his book and have contact with the children in both clinics.
He mentioned that on the occasion of the "International Children's Theatre Day", a children's performance for children will be held tomorrow at the Makarios Hospital. The Deputy Minister added that little by little "we would like to work together to take it to the other hospitals for adult patients."
The Deputy Minister of Culture thanked the Minister of Health for his immediate response to this call and this collaboration. "I think it will be an excellent result and will help many of our fellow citizens," she added.
The Minister of Health, in their own statements, said that "culture is a fundamental means of promoting health."
"As the Ministry of Health, we want to integrate culture and art into patient care. As recent studies say, culture contributes to the mental and physical health of patients," Damianos said.
In this context, he said, "we are here today, at Makarios Hospital, in a beautiful initiative of the Ministry of Culture, which includes the donation of books to the Hospital Library. It is a first step on our part as well. Surely this cooperation will be extended to other areas, in the same context of promoting culture and health."
In response to a question from a journalist, the Deputy Minister replied that the effort is for children to get to know the authors themselves. She noted that as Deputy Minister she seeks cooperation with authors. "We want this cooperation with the authors. For them to come here themselves, to read their books and I think it gets another interest when you also have those who wrote the books," the Deputy Minister of Culture said in this regard. She added that it was also an initiative of the "Children's Book Writers Association."
"It was a good occasion," she said."
She also stressed that theatre is something we will offer as a Deputy Ministry and we hope to continue.
Asked to answer when the initiative is expected to be extended to other hospitals, the Deputy Minister of Culture explained that with books it can move very quickly. There are libraries in the hospitals with librarians who are officials of the Ministry of State for Culture, she explained in this regard. "It's just that these libraries are scientific libraries," he said. He added that there will also be cooperation with hospital administrators, with the aim of launching this initiative in the coming months.
(EFF/MS/AF)
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