The Jockey Hollow Veterinary Practice in New Milford, N.Y., owned and operated by Dr. Jennie Rubenstein, is proud to announce its active support of the Josh and Friends donor program, providing comfort to pediatric patients during their hospital stays.
In December, the Jockey Hollow Veterinary Practice donated two cases of “I’ll Be OK” gift sets, which include Josh, a plush Golden Retriever therapy doll and a hardcover copy of “I’ll Be OK,” written by Dr. Randy Lange, to The Children’s Hospital at Montefiore in the Bronx. Future donations are also planned.
The program aims to help relieve the anxiety many pediatric patients experience during their hospital stays, particularly when they are separated from their parents, with the comforting and healing powers of canine companionship in the form of Josh. Most hospitals allow the plush doll to accompany the child through pre-op procedures and immediately rejoin the patient in the recovery room.
The Josh and Friends program was started in 1997 by Dr. Lange and Doug Lesher. Dr. Lange had written “I’ll Be OK,” an uplifting “adventure in getting well” which chronicles Josh’s treatment and surgery at Dr. Rick’s animal hospital, after his own 9-year-old daughter needed a tonsillectomy but he could not find a children’s book that might alleviate her fears about the procedure.
“I’ll Be OK” gift sets are available either for purchase or for designated donation at the Jockey Hollow Veterinary Practice. Portions of the proceeds also go toward benefiting the Children’s Miracle Network. That alliance includes 170 children’s hospitals with 17 million patients treated annually and $2.5 billion in charity care provided each year.
The American Veterinary Medical Association and the Student Chapters of the American Veterinary Medical Association have adopted Josh and Friends as an official fundraiser for the Children’s Miracle Network
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