Since 2005 the (sub-)foundation Saat supports a mother and child program of a hospital school in Armenia. The project is attached to the Arabkir Children’s Hospital in Eriwan, which has a cooperation with the University Children Hospital in Zurich since 2007. Today, the Arabkir Children’s Hospital is the pediatric reference centre for the whole of Armenia and a training centre for pediatrics.

The purpose of the program is to work with women who have a sick child in their family and need support when struggling to cope with this difficult situation. While the children are in the Hospital, the family has access to different workshops which teach practical life skills. The courses are currently offered in cooking, art and craft, computing and languages. Not only the families can take advantage of these workshops but also the medical personnel at the hospital.

Every month, about 25 families can take part. The participation is free of charge. Thanks to the program, the mothers receive psychological help and relief so that they don’t feel alone with their sick child anymore. Besides, the workshops support values like self-confidence and respect while creating a friendly atmosphere. The participation in the workshops is also a chance to get away from the hospital routines, forget all the worries and engage in an activity with the whole family.

With the huge number of refugees from Karabach, the mother and child project is confronted with another big task: Literally all sick refugee children and their families came to Arabkir Children’s Hospital. They were received in the staff’s families or offered a personal holiday flat. To pay the refugees who found work in the hospital, everyone from director to cleaner donates 10% of his own income. Winter in Armenia is similar to ours. People need warm shoes, jackets, blankets… Most of them arrived just with their clothes, which they wore to escape.