Four-year-old patient Marnie Robertson, from Sutton Coldfield, received the surprise of her life, when a stay at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, turned into an opportunity to meet Woody, Buzz and Jessie, the stars of Disney and Pixar’s “Toy Story 5”.
The trio were in town for a special patient screening of the latest instalment of the iconic movie franchise at Birmingham Children’s Hospital’s new MediCinema, which opened its doors in March.
The red carpet was rolled out for patients, and their excitement levels reached ‘infinity and beyond’ when, upon arrival, they were greeted by their Toy Story heroes. The magic continued inside the MediCinema as patients enjoyed additional entertainment before Toy Story 5 began.
Marnie was one of those to attend the screening. Marnie has just had gastrostomy surgery to create a small opening through her abdominal wall into her stomach, where a feeding tube has been fitted, which entirely bypasses the mouth and throat.
Marnie’s been a patient at the hospital since birth. She was born with a bowel obstruction, which was picked up during one of her mum Verity’s antenatal scans. At two-days-old, she had surgery to remove the part of her bowel affected by the obstruction and spent 12 weeks on our neonatal surgery ward. Once home, Marnie’s challenges continued, as she struggled to thrive, and Verity noticed delays in her development. After undergoing genome sequencing – tests which looked at Marnie’s genes – at 18-months-old she was diagnosed with Koolen De Vries Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder characterised by some of her symptoms, such as epilepsy, hypermobility and muscle dystonia.
She’s had a number of stays in hospital since then, but this is the first time Marnie’s visited the new MediCinema. Verity said: “What an incredible experience, not only to watch Toy Story 5 in hospital, but to meet Woody, Buzz and Jessie too. Marnie absolutely loved it, and it was so nice to be able to get off the ward for a while. We’re so grateful for the experience and we’ll definitely be back to the MediCinema.”
Birmingham Children’s Hospital opened its new MediCinema in March following a £1m charity appeal by Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity and MediCinema charity. The fully accessible, 84-seat MediCinema creates a space where patients and families, who sometimes spend weeks and months in hospital, can spend quality time together away from the wards, providing meaningful respite, reducing feelings of isolation, anxiety and stress and providing some normality during what can be challenging times.
Mark Brider, CEO at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “We were so thrilled to be able to bring this special experience to our brilliant patients thanks to MediCinema and The Walt Disney Company. We always aim to surprise and delight our children with fun and exciting activities onsite to help distract them from their surroundings and ensure they don’t feel they’re missing out while in hospital. The smiles on their faces as they got to meet their Toy Story heroes in person, followed by the film itself on the big screen, was priceless. We’re so grateful.”
Paul Giggal, COO at MediCinema, commented: “It was a delight to bring some extra movie magic to the young patients and families enjoying our new MediCinema at Birmingham Children’s Hospital today. Thanks to our long-term partner Disney, it was wonderful to see so many patients faces light up when they got to meet Woody, Buzz and Jessie and to see them enjoy our themed Fun in the Foyer arts and crafts. We hope everyone had a fantastic time meeting the all-star cast of Toy Story 5 and creating some unforgettable memories.”
The MediCinema screens the latest films at no cost to the patients or the NHS. To find out more or to donate to Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity’s ongoing fund, please visit bch.org.uk/MediCinema.