OstoBuddies

OstoBuddies

Give with warm hands and a happy heart

Established 2023

About OstoBuddies

Having an ostomy is not a walk in the park. It can mean an upheaval in lifestyle, personal choices, body image and self-esteem - not to mention the steep learning curve! Having company and knowing they're not alone in this journey can be therapeutic for ostomates; sometimes a stuffy (plush toy, doll, stuffed animal, etc.) can help our young patients with that.

Giraffe soft toy and plush animal doll beige color background for kids

So what?

After an encounter with a patient who benefitted from receiving a stuffed animal with an "ostomy" sewn in (I used a scalpel, surgical suture kit, and red rubber tube), I thought it would be a good idea to make them more available. However, the really nice-looking dolls in the market cost a fortune (we're looking at $40+) and the affordable ones, well, look terrifying (think voodoo doll).

Baby sleeping while embracing a plush doll

Now what?

Over the summer I worked with some associates and long story short, some very generous middle schoolers from Pearl River Middle School collected and donated about 100 stuffies and had a button sewn on each of them to mimic an ostomy. After getting the all-clear from IP&C, I'm working with Child Life now that ostobuddies are ready for distribution!

NYP CHONY

How you can help

If you and/or the Child Life specialist on your respective units know of a patient with an ostomy, kindly get the MRN and let us know! A list can be compiled and from there, the WOC team can coordinate with Child Life to see if this ostobuddy is something they (patient/parents) would be interested in. Each stuffy is different - teddy bears, hippos, unicorns, etc. each with their own "ostomy" (red button) sewn - and each stuffy comes with a note containing information on the generous donors as well as an email address to which patients can send a thank you note. Each thank you note will be featured here on this website!

Heartfelt thanks

Thank you so much for this darling buddy complete with an ostomy! He is cute, cuddly, and comforting!

-Clara (16yo)

My Name is Kai, I am 10month old. I just got ileostomy surgery 6 days ago. I have been playing with my giraffe since I received him. Specifically playing with his ostomy. Thank you so much for this plushy. It’s something i can take home with me to remember this time. Thank you again to all the students and teachers involved this is amazing!

-Kai (2mo) & Mom (Jah)