Hospitals can feel overwhelming when you’re a kid. The rooms are bright, the equipment is loud, and there are a lot of unfamiliar faces asking questions you might not fully understand. At CHEO, staff have found a simple, heartfelt way to make that experience a little less scary: crochet monkeys. And the idea didn’t come from doctors or administrators, it came from a group of thoughtful students.
A few years ago, students from the Faculty of Medicine at the University Of Ottawa began making crochet monkeys with one goal in mind: to help children feel more comfortable and seen during their visits to CHEO. What started as a small passion project has grown into something meaningful for families walking through hospital doors.
At first glance, the monkeys are exactly what they sound like small, handmade toys stitched together with soft yarn and friendly faces. But inside the hospital walls, they’ve taken on a much bigger role.
Instead of trying to describe an IV or a needle in clinical terms, nurses and child life specialists can show what’s going to happen using the monkey. The monkey might “get” a bandage first, a prosthetic, or a cochlear implant. Suddenly, something unknown becomes something visible and manageable.
Photo Credits: Medical.Monkeys
For a child, that shift matters. When you can see it, touch it, and watch it happen to your stuffed friend first, the fear often softens. The monkey becomes a partner in the experience, the monkeys educate the children and prepare them for the surgeries they will endure.
Beyond education, there’s comfort. Waiting rooms can feel long. Test results can feel even longer. Having something soft to hold onto during those moments makes a difference. The monkeys often end up tucked under small arms, brought into procedures, and carried home afterward as a reminder of bravery.
The students didn’t hand over the idea and walk away. Many continue to knit, crochet and collect donations of yarn so the project keeps going. It’s a reminder that care isn’t just about medicine, sometimes care is something soft, made by hand, and given with heart.