Caring Hands Donates More Fidget Mats to Patients’ Hands
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The Caring Hands Women’s Ministry at Bonanza Community Church made and donated another set of fidget mats to Sky Lakes Medical Center. These fidget mats, or sensory blankets, are for patients who need something to do with their hands while receiving care at the hospital.
They are brightly colored rectangular lap blankets with zippers, pockets, buttons, flaps, toys attached to strings, and many other sensory activities in a variety of combinations to give patients something to fidget with. Nursing staff keep these mats on hand in case a patient doesn’t know what to do with their hands.
When looking for nurses familiar with the mats to pose for pictures to show off the new arrivals, one nurse commented on how awesome the mats are and that a patient was currently using one. The patient had been given the mat to hold on their lap to let them fidget with something other than their Iv’s and monitoring equipment. These mats are incredibly popular with patients and their families.
Each mat is unique, and hand sewn. LoVonne Marsland is part of the Caring Hands group that makes the mats and she said Caring Hands have been making and donating these mats to Sky Lakes for at least three years now. She said it started when a member of the group, who also volunteered at Sky Lakes, told them that the place that previously supplied similar mats to the hospital stopped making or sending them. The group decided that they could make mats for the hospital. With about seven people in the group and a significant amount of prep work, it takes about one day per person to make one mat. Marsland made 14 from home last year and the group donates mats three to four times a year.
Thank you so much Caring Hands for handcrafting these sensory blankets for our patients!
