The document discusses the use of humor and clowning in healthcare. It provides a brief history of humor's role in ancient Greek and medieval medicine. It then discusses modern scientific research showing that laughter reduces stress, increases pain tolerance, and boosts the immune system. The article focuses on the work of the Clown Doctors Charitable Trust in New Zealand, describing how clowns use humor and distraction to help patients, especially children, cope with medical procedures. It also provides an overview of the NZOQ-Lysaght Conference Scholarship for quality professionals to attend conferences.

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NEW ZEALAND ORGANISATION FOR QUALITY
is the best medicine!is the best medicine!
Clown DoctorsClown Doctors
CharitableTrustCharitableTrust
LAUGHTERAUGHTERLLAUGHTERAUGHTER

2. Official Magazine of the New Zealand Organisation for Quality – April 2014 | 11
Q share: Health sector
Humour in healing and
healthcare
The old adage suggests laughter
is the best medicine, but in this
modern age of research and
science is that still the case? Yes, as
Cameron Taylor, Communications
and Marketing Co-ordinator for the
Clown Doctors Charitable Trust
explains:
Early history of ‘clowning’ in medicine
Clowning originated in ancient Greece, where comedic plays
were staged to bring relief and release from the daily grind.
Some ancient Greek physicians actually prescribed that
their patients go to a comedy as part of treatment. Clowns
held high stature in Native American society, usually fulfilling
the roles of teacher, priest and doctor, using humour as a
healing tool. During the Middle Ages, court jesters were
popular in throne rooms to relieve the royalty’s stress.
In the 14th Century, French surgeon Henri de Mondeville
prescribed laughter for recovery. “Let the surgeon take care
to regulate the whole regimen of the patient’s life, for joy and
happiness allowing his relatives and special friends to cheer
him and by having someone tell him jokes,” he said.
Prior to challenging the Catholic Church in the 16th Century,
Martin Luther advised depressed members of his parish to
surround themselves with people who could joke and make
them laugh, because he believed it could help cure their
depression. With this rich historic background, humour in
healthcare is clearly not a recent concept.
The science of laughter as medicine
Since the 1960s, experiments and scholarly articles have
confirmed there is a connection between our health and
having a laugh. Clown Doctors New Zealand’s CEO and
Creative Director, Prof. Dr Thomas Petschner is passionate
about this topic: “There is an actual chemical reaction in the
body that happens when you laugh, or even just smile, and
the different hormones that are released actually make you
feel better. It alleviates fear and pain.”
Science has proven that a good belly-laugh produces
endorphins, a chemical which makes you feel good, blocks
pain, and decreases stress. One of the modern pioneers
of healing through humour, Norman Cousins made this
discovery for himself. He had severe spinal arthritis and
found that watching Marx Brothers films gave him genuine
pain relief. He writes in his book Anatomy of Illness
(published 1979) that: “I made the joyous discovery that ten
minutes of genuine belly laughter had an anaesthetic effect
and would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep.
When the pain-killing effect of the laughter wore off, we
would switch on the motion picture projector again and not
infrequently, it would lead to another pain-free interval.”
Prof. Dr Thomas Petschner, founder of the International
Institute for Medical Clowning that integrates the science
with applications for patients, writes that “Laughing is also
scientifically proven to create more blood cells, boost
your immune system, improve respiration and lower your
cholesterol. So much research has been done in so many
universities around the world, that to dispute a connection
between healing and humour would be like suggesting the
world is actually flat.”
The NZ clown doctors
In 1996 German psychologist Dr Michael Titze proved that
a good chuckle reduces high blood pressure. It’s something
Lisa Wingfield, AKA Clown Doctor Bluebottle has seen many
times, commenting that once when a child having her blood
pressure taken it went right down while she was chuckling
away.
Besides the direct chemical and biological responses
caused by laughter, humour can play a much larger role in
the healing process.
“We can use it in hospitals as a distraction for people who
are going to have a painful or a scary procedure,” says
Clown Doctors New Zealand Programme Director Rita
Noetzel. “We’ve seen it time and time again. The staff know
the Clown Doctors are going to be on the ward that particular
day and they just wait until the Clown Doctors are there so
continued on page 10
Prof. Dr Thomas Petschner entertains as Clown Doctor
Exami-Nation

3. 10 | Official Magazine of the New Zealand Organisation for Quality – April 2014
Q awards: Conference scholarship
there’ll be a bit of a distraction. It won’t be as traumatic for
the child, it won’t be as traumatic for the family, everyone will
just be happier,” she says.
According to Anne Morgan, Child Services Manager at
the Canterbury District Health Board, being happier also
means being healthier: “Laughing de-stresses you. If you
are de-stressed then you heal faster and that’s the aim of
distraction. If you are going into a procedure or something
and you are really wound up and up-tight, your recovery time
is potentially a little bit longer.”
Lisa Wingfield has helped distract many patients from
potential pain and trauma. She shares with me a story about
a little child going to theatre who didn’t want to get on the
bed. Lisa said: “Well I’ll go down to theatre. Oooh it will be
like the movies.” She sat on the bed, and the child sat beside
her with her teddy. They rode to theatre together – having
fun along the way to distract the child. This was supportive
for the parents and staff as it meant they didn’t have a really
scared, anxious child prior to an operation.
Laughing can even help you lose weight. Dr Maciej S.
Buchowski of Vanderbilt University monitored people
watching funny movies and noted that because of the
increased heart rate, they burned about 1.3 calories per
minute. Jogging burns around 10 calories a minute, so do
not expect funny movies to replace time at the gym. But
chuckling for 15 minutes every day for a year could help you
shed nearly two kilograms.
Having a good laugh will not replace antibiotics, time at the
gym, or necessary operations, but it is well documented and
proven that a good giggle can reduce recovery times and
improve your overall well-being. Given the incredible list of
mental and physical health benefits, perhaps there is more
than just a grain of truth to that old cliché after all: laughter is
the best medicine!
For further information please contact
cameron@clowndoctors.org.nz
continued from page 11
NZOQ-Lysaght Conference
Scholarship 2014
Purpose: The aim of this scholarship is to provide an opportunity each year for a person(s)
employed in quality management, and who is (are) a member(s) of NZOQ, to attend a selected Australasian quality conference
to improve their knowledge of contemporary quality management practices and associated topics, meet other quality
professionals and working networks and other ‘centre approaches’ in Australia and New Zealand.
Value: This scholarship has a value of up to NZ$1,500 towards the cost of the conference attendance (to include registration,
travel, accommodation and subsistence costs, etc).
Eligibility: Candidates are invited to apply to NZOQ for consideration for the scholarship. The scholarship criteria are as
follows:
1. Only one nomination per individual and/or company member is permitted each year.
2. Scholarships will normally be granted to an individual only once.
3. Candidates must be an individual member of NZOQ and/or an employee of a company member of NZOQ. If the candidate is not
already an individual member of NZOQ, then the host company member is to arrange for the candidate to become an individual
member of NZOQ.
4. Candidates must be operating at a junior or middle level of quality management or supervision and have a minimum of three (3)
years’ experience within a quality management environment.
5. Candidates will be required to nominate in their application for this Scholarship, the specific area of interest that they wish to
concentrate on at the conference of their choice.
6. Candidates must agree to provide a written report on their conference experience. The report is to be of no fewer than 300 words
and suitable for publication in QNewZ. It is expected that the report will be submitted to NZOQ within four (4) weeks of completing
their Scholarship / attendance at the conference.
7. Scholarship applicants may be required to undertake an interview.
Evaluation: An evaluation of scholarship applications will be conducted by a Review Panel, established by the NZOQ Board.
The Review Panel will make recommendations to the Board for scholarship(s), who will then make the final decision on the
award. More than one Scholarship can be awarded in any calendar year.
The successful applicant(s) will be required to produce a written report within four (4) weeks of attending the conference, giving
an outline of the conference programme, highlights, information obtained and how the new knowledge will be applied to the
applicant’s work. The report shall be no fewer than 300 words and will be published in the NZOQ newsletter (QNewZ).
Administration: Successful applicant(s) are expected to make their own conference attendance arrangements. A successful
applicant or their employer should pay for all travel costs and those other costs associated with the conference attendance. The
successful applicant(s) or their employer would then forward a copy of the claim/appropriate invoices to the NZOQ Executive
Director for reimbursement of the NZOQ (Scholarship) contribution.
In the normal course of events, NZOQ will pay 80% of the scholarship amount upon receipt of copies of conference-related
invoices, with the balance of 20% paid upon receipt of the written report.
Closing Date for 2014 Scholarship is September 30, 2014.
For further information contact: membership@nzoq.org.nz