Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Treat for hospital’s kids with donation of books
A DUNDEE mum has donated 500 new books to Ninewells’ neonatal unit – one for every child ad m itted to the u n it this year.
Nicola Donnelly, from Stobswell, set the ambitious target in the run up to World Book Day earlier this year, after seeing the benefit reading brought to her own son, Leo.
Leo, now aged two, was born 14 weeks early and spent eight weeks in an incubator at the Dundee unit, having been transferred there from UCL Hospital in London.
Husband Ross, 36, and Nicola, 35, read to Leo every day to aid the bonding process and encourage Leo’s brain development.
Nicola said: “It was suggested that we read to Leo but we noticed that there were no books around.
“We were lucky that a friend could bring us some because it can be difficult to get out and buy books and you might not have any at home if your baby has arrived early or they don’t have any siblings. We thought it would be helpful if they had some books there.”
Nicola, who formally worked as an Usborne book seller, donated a batch of books over the Christmas period last year, then raised £2,000 to purchase 500 books on the neonatal unit’s behalf.
Money was also donated to the cause from JoJo’s Nursery Dundee, Al-Maktoum College of Higher Education, Scottish Book Trust and the Dundee Sheriff Court WRVS ladies.
And author Gill White donated 10 copies of Leo and the Lightning Dragons, which she wrote for her own son, also called Leo.
Nicola added: “We wanted to make sure we provided nice quality, new books that parents would be able to take home as a keepsake.”
Alison Findlay, senior charge nurse, said: “We can’t thank Nicola enough for this amazing donation of books. They really are an invaluable resource.
“We give them to family members and siblings of babies in the unit and they read the books aloud to the babies in their incubators.
“There is a lot of research about how comforting it is for babies to hear and get familiar with the voices of their close family members so this is an excellent way of promoting that.
“This is Nicola’s second donation of books and they fly off the shelf when they come in and we notice a difference when they run out, so we are really grateful.”