‘Arts-based digital storytelling in paediatrics: Enhancing hospitalised children’s emotional wellbeing through animation films during COVID-19’

The project has been informed by the extensive literature on integrating applied theatre with new technologies, as well as my research in understanding the unique qualities of theatre work in hospital settings. This presentation discusses the potential of digital films to help children verbalize pain and emotional needs during COVID-19. As with applied theatre practice in hospital, the ‘Rocket-Arts online’ project uses bespoke animation films to enable children’s transition from reality to fantasy. By doing that it creates a gateway, an escapism to imagined worlds, moments and experiences during their hospitalisation. The focus is on the role of digital arts as stimuli for hospitalized children to tell stories inspired by the films and communicate their emotional needs to adults. By learning from the pandemic to pay attention to children’s emotional health and wellbeing, 'Rocket-Arts’ allows hidden suffering of silent ill children to be spoken. It is argued that this is potentially an important finding towards improving the understanding and assessment of children’s pain in paediatrics.