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DOGGED DEVOTION BRINGS JOY TO THE WARD —
DOGGED DEVOTION BRINGS JOY TO THE WARD
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Wearing her specially-made nurse’s uniform, Storm radiates fun and friendliness as she walks around Ward 9 at Nelson Hospital.
Storm is a four year-old labradoodle owned by registered nurse Desiree Johns. Her role as a ‘therapy dog’ is to bring joy to our patients.
Desiree picked Storm from a litter as a birthday present for her husband. However, the puppy couldn’t live with them initially in their rental accommodation so Storm lived with Desiree’s mother-in-law. It was with her that Storm began doing therapy work visiting a day service for people with special needs.
When Storm was able to live with Desiree, she continued her therapy work, with monthly visits to Ward 9.
“She’s placid, intuitive and a real people person,” says Desiree. “She just gently goes up to patients that want to see her.”