The Independent Member for Denison, Andrew Wilkie, joined Fairy Sparkle to call for a garden for sick children to be incorporated into the multi-million refurbishment of the Royal Hobart Hospital.
Mr Wilkie and Fairy Sparkle are due to meet the Health Minister Michael Ferguson at 1pm today to discuss the proposal that would provide a space for healing, grieving and quality family time outside the sterile hospital setting.
Fairy Sparkle has been the driving force in establishing 13 garden sanctuaries at hospitals across the country for sick children and their families. She has received an Order of Australia Medal for her work with sick kids and you can see examples of her work at: www.fairysparkle.com. Fairy Sparkle is so dedicated to her cause that she normally dresses as a fairy.
“These gardens can help deliver a fairytale escape from a parent’s worst nightmare of having a sick child in hospital,’’ Mr Wilkie said. “I hope that Mr Ferguson can recognise the healing benefits and incorporate a garden sanctuary into the $657m rebuild of the RHH.’’
Mr Wilkie is a member of the RHH professional reference group and secured $340m for the RHH redevelopment following the 2010 election and the $325m Tasmanian Health Rescue Package in 2012.
Andrew Wilkie, Independent Member for Denison
