Children Receiving Medical Treatments Need to Play

SANTA MONICA, Calif. – A foundation created in memory of a four-year-old cancer victim is providing hospitals the opportunity to offer sick children an environment that is familiar, non-threatening and fun through the implementation of "The Mobile Playroom" program. This program makes it possible for sick kids to play, even if they cannot leave their bed.

The Oscar Litwak Foundation (www.OscarLitwakFoundation.org) was created to help children who receive long-term treatments in medical centers do the one thing that will bring a little ray of sunshine into their day. When children can play it greatly helps their ability to endure painful and often discouraging treatments associated with challenging diseases and injuries.

Donations to the Oscar Litwak Foundation will make it possible to create playrooms in medical facilities where there were none before, remodel and refurbish older playrooms, and gift Mobile Playrooms that go directly to children who cannot leave their bed or room.

"The mission of the Oscar Litwak Foundation is to improve the quality of life of sick children while receiving long term medical treatment. The foundation strives to make a child’s stay in the hospital as enjoyable and comfortable as possible by creating fun playroom environments and establishing recreational programs in pediatric clinics in the United States," explained Roberto Litwak, foundation president.

Medical facilities see the portable playrooms as a great tool to help children who are unable to go to a traditional playroom. These Mobile Playrooms are specially manufactured, highly customized carts filled with toys, books, arts and crafts material that can be wheeled from one room to the next, serving a great number of patients.

The new program has already provided a Mobile Playroom to the pediatrics department of the Kaiser Permanente Hospital of Los Angeles, and another will be presented to the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles on March 17, 2005. Continuing donations will be used to provide additional units to more hospitals in the near future, including the Encino-Tarzana Regional Medical Center, the Pediatric Oncology Clinic in Kaiser Permanente of Los Angeles, the Pediatric Orthopedic Surgery department at the UCLA Hospital in Santa Monica and to the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C..

About the Oscar Litwak Foundation:

The foundation was created to honor the memory of four-year-old Oscar Litwak who spent the majority of his short life suffering from a form of cancer of the kidneys. Oscar was able to endure the challenges of his many treatments through play. Regardless of his pain and how sick he felt, Oscar always found comfort and even a little happiness in the playroom.

The Oscar Litwak Foundation was created with the purpose of perpetuating Oscar’s happiness and helping other sick children find some happiness too. The organization’s efforts are geared to creating, rehabilitating, supplying, and maintaining playroom facilities in pediatric hospitals, clinics, and pediatric wards of non-pediatric hospitals in hopes that children requiring long and painful treatments can find some refuge and comfort there.

The Oscar Litwak Foundation incorporated in the State of California on October 20, 2003, and has been granted tax exempt status from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service as described under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal revenue Code.

Contact:
Roberto Litwak
310-656-0818
roberto@oscarlitwakfoundation.org
www.oscarlitwakfoundation.org