What a blessing and a privilege to enter a space few have the opportunity to even stand at the doorway peering inward! That is what it is like for a hospital clown or family entertainer in the healthcare venue. Often, the patients are not at their best, but they welcome us in along with our varied partners in crime, trappings and miscellaneous props. Realize — we are complete strangers, yet we are welcomed in as if we are old friends!

And so it is, and how it goes…. on most rounds. The point of our visit is to brighten a patient’s day if just for that moment in time. In doing so, through the healing humor freely and generously dispensed, it is with the hope and prayer of relieving their pain for at least a second.

Of course to be able to do this, the audience — the patient, must be willing to take in the performance. Usually, they are. We have learned that in asking if we may enter their room, we are requesting their permission first, seeking engagement and acceptance by them. In doing so, we risk being turned away, of course.

Every reaction and most welcomes are as different as the performance, group interaction, and each individual patient visited. The bottomline success realized in most visitations is mission accomplished, signified by even the smallest glimmer of a smile by the patient.