RELATED LINKS: The Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital Their aim is to provide multi disciplinary, specialised and comprehensive paediatric health care. Click here Clowning 'doctors' in Joburg hospitals Clowns and hospitals don't normally go together but there's a bunch of clowns in town who visit two Johannesburg hospitals each week to "help the medicine go down". Read more Poignant tales from the children's ward The four-year-old wandering around the ward is a quiet child who seldom speaks or smiles, her face, arms, back and stomach badly scarred by burns, her breathing difficult. She is one of 11 children, nine of whom were inside the family's Alexandra shack when it caught alight. Read more

Red Cross to host glittering teddy bear banquet June 29, 2004 By Chandrea Gerber TEDDY bears sparkling with the masterpieces of top South African jewellery designers are on the auction programme at the 'Precious Bears' banquet to be held at The Castle in Kyalami on Saturday, 31 July, to raise funds for the Red Cross Children's Hospital. Dressed in the designs of award-winning South African jewellers, the bears from Guernsey promise to seduce guests with diamonds donated by De Beers, at the gourmet function to be held under the stars. The only dedicated specialist paediatric hospital in sub-Saharan Africa, the Red Cross Children's Hospital has been in operation for almost 50 years. Though most of its patients come form disadvantaged communities, the hospital treats over 200 000 patients from South Africa and the rest of Africa yearly, irrespective of race, gender, religion or financial status. To fulfil its aim of providing specialised and comprehensive health care of the highest quality in a nurturing, modern and child-friendly environment, all proceeds of the auction will go towards revamping the hospital. It maintains 331 beds, and has approximately 1 100 staff members, ranging from academics, doctors and nurses, professions allied to medicine, clerical and non-professional staff. The paediatric pioneers have a solid reputation for top-class multi-disciplinary care and boast a number of South African firsts: 1959 - the first open-heart surgery on a child. 1960 - the largest neonatal intensive care unit (Dr Chris Barnard established the original cardiac unit and ICU). 1964 - the first hospital to separate conjoined twins. 1969 - the first children's cancer service. 1971 - the first paediatric poison information centre. 1978 - the first Child Accident Prevention Foundation (CAPFSA). 1979 - the first and only paediatric neurosurgery programme. 1981 - the first lumbosacral selective rhizotomy for spasticity. 1984 - the first dedicated paediatric trauma unit. 1984 - the first paediatric day surgery unit. 1990 - the first child heart transplant. 1991 - the first and only paediatric liver transplant programme. 1997 - the first double transplant on a child (liver and kidney). 2001 - the first autologous epithelial autograft on a burn patient. 2002 - the first living related liver transplant. Jewellery designers include award winners American Swiss, Arthur Kaplan, Damjee Jewellers, Elegance Jewellers, Friedman, Randal Poultney, Schwartz Jewellers, Shimansky, Sid Forman and Uwe Koeter. Tickets for the 'Precious Bears' banquet are R550 per person or R5 500 for a table of 10. All proceeds will go to the Red Cross Children's Hospital in Cape Town. For more information, contact Edith Venter on 011 783 5887, or by email at edith@mweb.co.za. For more information on the Red Cross children's hospital, go to the website. Permission to use web site material Publishers may use material from this site free of charge, as long as: Credit is given to either the "City of Johannesburg website (www.joburg.org.za)" or to "Johannesburg News Agency (www.joburg.org.za)"; If the article is used online, a link is provided to the original article on this website; The name of the article's author is acknowledged; The webmaster is informed of how and where the material is used (fill in this brief online form). Johannesburg News Agency is operated by BIG Media at 011-484-1400 Print this Page E-mail this article to a friend Help using Joburg.org.za