FONDAZIONE THEODORA: A 30-YEAR DREAM
The Armando Testa agency creates the new campaign celebrating the 30th birthday of “Dream Doctors”.
Fondazione Theodora is celebrating thirty years of activity, an achievement marking three decades of constant commitment to listening to and comforting kids and adolescents in hospital by using a tool that is as easy as it is powerful: dreams.
Founded in 1993 in Switzerland by the goodwill of brothers André and Jan Poulie, the foundation arrived in Italy on 30 May 1995 at the Pediatric ward of the Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori (National Tumour Institute) in Milan. The Foundation pays homage to their mother Théodora Poulie, a courageous and generous woman who always faced the challenges and difficulties of life including the illness of her son, André, with strength and a positive spirit. This great example of resilience was the inspiration for the idea of transforming a smile and a dream into a concrete type of treatment.
It is not by chance that the pumping heart of the Foundation is represented by “ Dream Doctor”, professionals recruited and trained by the Foundation itself to become involved with sensitivity and competence in extremely delicate contexts. Every day on a weekly basis they contribute to the psycho-physical wellbeing of the patients, by lightning the atmosphere in the wards and actively supporting families and healthcare professionals thanks to individual visits to patients, pre and post operative assistance, visiting pediatric hospices for terminally ill children and support in obstetrics and neonatal pathologies for new mothers and newborns experiencing difficulties.
This is a true example of integrative medicine to all effects and it demonstrates how offering a child and his/her family the opportunity to experience positive emotions while in hospital makes an important contribution to the effectiveness of the therapeutic journey, considering the person as a whole. And this is confirmed by the statistics: 98.5% of the kids and adolescents involved stated that they benefited from meeting the Dream Doctors, with 48.4% and 38.8% of patients respectively noting considerable improvement in their mood and joyful moments. Parents too reported a positive impact on their relationship with their children during their hospitalisation.
Today the Fondazione Theodora is present in 44 pediatric departments in 13 hospitals in 10 Italian cities. In 2024 alone, thanks to a team of 31 Dream Doctors and an operative team of 5 members, more than 35,000 kids and adolescents were visited, and support was also offered to more than 105,000 families. At the international level, the Foundation is active in six countries, with more than 200 Dream Doctors in more than 160 health care facilities.
On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Foundation, Emanuela Basso Petrino, Board member of the Fondazione Theodora, states: “This achievement represents a moment of great pride and gratitude for us. I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to our mission over these 30 years: the Dream Doctors, who are the ambassadors of our commitment, the healthcare professionals who work with us every day, our donors and partner companies with their generous support. It is thanks to them that we can continue to bring relief and smiles to kids in Italian hospitals. ”
Looking to the future, the Foundation is committed to strengthening the impact of its activities, by paying ever more attention to sustainability and optimising resources, both human and financial. What’s more, since 2024, the Fondazione Theodora has been part of the European Federation of Healthcare Clown Organizations (EFHCO), obtaining an important quality certification for the period 2024–2029. A neutral auditor evaluated the organisation from a range of perspectives — among which financial transparency, artistic quality and clarity in management — recognising excellence in the healthcare sphere.
To celebrate this important milestone, the Theodora Foundation has launched a new communication campaign created by the Armando Testa agency, one of the most important agencies in the Italian creative arena. An exceptional partner, who has been able to interpret in a sensitive way and with powerful expression the soul of the Foundation and the profound value of its work, embracing its values so much that it offered its contribution, together with the production company AT Studios pro-bono.
The campaign, with executive creative direction from Michele Mariani, creative team Matteo Giachin Ricca and Caterina Maliardi and Ilaria Lavagnolo, was designed to convey to everyone the mission of the Foundation: to let every child continue dreaming, even in hospital. What is particular about it is the treatment chosen, children’s drawings, a tool that immerses the observer in the point of view of the youngsters, meaning that the viewer can experience the world through their eyes.
The result is a deep dive into an encounter with a Dream Doctor, that the child describes by way of drawings, which come to life thanks to the animation by Studio Magoga, the expert direction of Luca Grafner and the musical accompaniment, specially composed by Operà Music.
So only at the end of the commercial, do we discover that the friendly Fox featured in the first drawings is actually a metaphor for the Dream Doctor who, with her soft toy fox, visits the child in his hospital room.
The campaign has been developed in a number of touchpoints, including 30’’ and 45’’ TV ads, radio and press, and created with the support of Pubblicità Progresso, and the ultimate goal is an invitation to support the Foundation to help even more children in hospital to make their dreams come true.
This 30-year milestone does not represent a point of arrival, rather the beginning of a new chapter. A journey that continues with the same dedication, the same courage and the same tenderness which has always been typical of the mission of the Theodora Foundation. Every day the Dream Doctors continue to walk side by side with thousands of kids and adolescents along with their families, bringing smiles at times of fear, listening in silence, being close in the most difficult moments. Behind every visit, there is a gesture of care. Behind every restored smile, there is the certainty that even in hospital you can continue to dream. In these thirty years the Theodora Foundation has built a network of trust, professionalism and love: a precious asset that grows thanks to the generosity of those who decide to support this mission. Doctors, nurses, donors, partner companies, volunteers and supporters: they are all part of a great community that shares a common goal, to defend childhood, even when it seems at its most vulnerable. For the future the Theodora Foundation is renewing its commitment to care for the emotional wellbeing of kids in hospital, making each department a little more humane, a little lighter and a little closer to a dream. Because every kid, wherever they might be, deserves to feel that they are simply a kid.
About Fondazione Theodora
Fondazione Theodora started its activities in Italy in 1995: today it is present in 44 pediatric departments in 13 hospitals in 10 Italian cities with 31 Dream Doctors and every year they bring a smile to more than 35,000 children and more than 105,000 family members. Theodora is responsible for selecting the Dream Doctors, it finances their initial training and updating workshops, ongoing psychological counselling, it organises their activities, ensuring all visits are of top quality. The Dream Doctors are professional artists (theatre actors, street theatre actors, mime artists) they are recruited and specially trained by the Foundation to work in a hospital setting working on emotions, looking after aspects where the child is in good health using four different programmes for their visit, individual in the ward, surgical support both pre- and post- operation, pediatric hospice and obstetrics and neonatal pathologies. To ensure the top quality of the visits, every Dream Doctor undergoes rigorous thorough initial training, as well as ongoing training and periodic psychological supervision carried out by an expert therapist in how to manage socio-health workers and prevent burn-out. The activities of the Dream Doctors are completely free of charge for the hospitals and, naturally also for the families of the young patients. In 2018, the Milan municipality awarded the Ambrogino d’Oro to the Theodora Foundation for its constant commitment to pediatric wellbeing. .
You can support the Foundation with a donation:
On-line: sul sito www.theodora.it
In bank: IBAN IT 07B03069 09606 100000113874
With your 5X1000: codice fiscale 97247270156
