What would it be like not to fear going to the doctor? And what if, instead of white walls, your doctor’s office had colorful murals depicting fairy-tale characters? Can a hospital visit be transformed from a source of anxiety into an opportunity to learn something new and have fun? Starting this October, young patients of Sofia’s Pirogov Hospital and their families will receive that exact opportunity, thanks to the America for Bulgaria Foundation’s Little Heroes campaign.
The campaign raised funds to remodel the children’s clinics at the N. I. Pirogov University Hospital and transform them into more welcoming and attractive spaces for children and their care givers. A host of private and corporate donors threw their support behind the initiative, including IKEA, UniCredit Bulbank, HP, Walltopia, Happy, and Muzeiko designer Lee Skolnick. In addition, over 8,000 individuals sent SMS donations.
Little Heroes helped refurbish a total of 65 patient and manipulation rooms and doctor’s offices on three floors, covering an area of 2,270 square meters, and build a new playground in the hospital grounds. The project is an important part of the overall reconstruction of the children’s surgery and traumatology center, undertaken by the hospital and financed by the Bulgarian state.
“Thank you from the heart to all those who took part in the initiative and donated funds! Thank you to the America for Bulgaria Foundation and all donors! So far, Pirogov has not been repaired since it was built, and it is important that people who come here feel calmer. I wish you fewer patients and that all of them will leave the hospital alive and healthy,” Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said at the official opening of the transformed clinics on October 23, 2017.
