"A home awy from home" for sick children and their families. Located at Östra sjukhuset in Göteborg.
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The Charity.
Ronald McDonald House Charities was started in the United States.
Founder and the largest contributor is the McDonalds chain of hamburger restaurants.
The charity has up until, the start of 1999, handed out almost $200 million globally.
The first house was opened in Philadelphia, USA, in 1974. Since then almost 200 houses
has been started around the world.
The House.
The purpose of a Ronald McDonald House is to be
on paediatric hospital campus as a "home away from home" for the ill children and
their families. The child that is for care at the hospital can if they are well enough
stay with their family at the house. If it is not so well it will spend a few
hours every day at the house.
The house plays a part in the healing process, as it very far from the rather sterile environment that hospital is. It also have the effect that the sick kid gets away for a time which is a big step for a child that has been held in the ward for weeks or months.
Sweden.
In Sweden, which has for long time had a very
good public health care, charity is not that usual on the hospitals as they
are in many other countries. During the 80's and 90's realty catched up. Consequently
in 1990 Ronald McDonald Barnfond [Ronald McDonald Children's Fund] was founded. It's
aim is to support medical projects for children up to 16 years of age. It supports many
such projects: Two Ronald McDonald Houses, play rooms at many hospitals, a medical
prize and various medical scientific research projects.
The first Ronald McDonald House in Sweden was opened in 1993 in Huddinge, Stockholm. The second, which is the one this site is about, is due to open up in September 1999. Located in Göteborg [Gothenburg], on the Swedish west coast, at the campus of Östra Sjukhuset.
The house in Göteborg.
Ronald McDonald House in Gothenburg is one of the largest of nearly 200 built.
The House is located on the campus of Östra sjukhuset on an 8.000 square meter area, which
was a gift from the community of Gothenburg. The house is built in two wings at right angels
to each other. Most of the windows and the sight are facing towards the nature. It can host twenty-five
families.
Each family has a room with a bathroom and a small hallway. There are two big kitchens and in each kitchen four families can be cooking at the same time. Every family has its own fridge and is responsible for its own cooking and eating. There are huge socialization rooms with open fireplaces and there are small libraries, computer rooms and even a teenager room for the older brothers and sisters were they can listen to music, play on a computer or just chat with friends.
Even if you do not understand Swedish, please take a little tour around the site too look at the pictures an such.
Please remember to put change in the collecting box when you are at McDonalds next time.
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