Renovation gives Maynard Children's Hospital patients room to be kids

As she pretended to shop with a baby doll in tow, Ariel Hunsucker, 3, had a smile on her face that could illuminate the tower lights of the James and Connie Maynard Children’s Hospital in Greenville.

As of Wednesday, Ariel was a few days into a stay at the hospital as part of her ongoing nine-month battle with cancer. She pretended to feed food to facility dog Sam and bounced between activities playing house. For a few minutes she could slip into her imagination and forget about tests, needles and procedures.

“She would be doing this at home,” said Alexandria Gardner, Ariel’s mother. “There’s nothing different besides the bad days where she’d just be in bed on her tablet.”

Since May, Ariel and other patients at Maynard Children’s Hospital have had access to a newly renovated playroom fully furnished with brand new toys, video game consoles, sensory activities and games. The $150,000 renovation was made possible through fundraising efforts by Pirates Vs. Cancer, a student-led group at East Carolina University’s Brody School of Medicine.

The group has pooled its funds since 2017 for the playroom project, according to Katy Holt, a second-year medical student. An annual Pirates Vs. Cancer event in the spring at ECU’s Health Sciences Campus, where students and staff cut and donate their hair, receives money from corporate sponsors as well as community members. The event raised over $17,000 in April alone.

“I think all medical students would say that they went into medicine to make a difference in the community and to make an impact,” Holt said. “It’s hard to see when you’re in your first two years of medical school. You’re in the library, you’re studying, but to be a part of such a big community event that raises money for a physical playroom that you can actually see, it impacts how we view medicine and our goals and drives.”

The renovations also converted a former storage space into a video gaming lounge for teenage patients. Kelsey Bennett, a child life specialist at Maynard, said that giving kids a space where they can be kids lets them come out of their shells a bit. She said the room serves as a “safe space” since no medical procedures are conducted within its walls.

Bennett said that “therapeutic play” gives patients a sense of agency during stays that could last months.

“They lose control whenever they’re inpatient for a long period of time, so this is where they can get that control back,” Bennett said.

The setting also provides a break for parents, Gardner said. Seeing her daughter excited and at play is a welcome relief from those bad days spent in bed.

“I love being here and watching her play with the toys,” Gardner said. “Seeing a smile on her face is definitely good for me.”