KUWAIT: On the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan, National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) held its annual Girgian event at NBK Specialty Hospital and Stem Cell Therapy Unit, at Al Sabah Medical district, to celebrate with the children the happy moments of Girgian and present them with felicitations and gifts. Shaikha Al Bahar, NBK Group Deputy Chief Executive Officer, along with NBK Public Relations and NBK Family shared happy moments with children.
NBK has always considered supporting the children an essential part of its social and community outreach. Sharing with these children residing at NBK Hospital major social and religious occasions come as part of an extensive social outreach program specifically mapped out and implemented by NBK. NBK’s visit to the hospital was emotional and overwhelming for both the children and NBK Team. It is a well rooted tradition that has been carried out by NBK each year in its efforts to continuously have an active role in the Kuwaiti society.
NBK Children’s Hospital stands as a landmark for the bank’s social initiatives towards children. NBK expanded the hospital’s capacity and opened recently the only Stem Cell Therapy Unit for children in Kuwait, further expanding its hospital’s ability to treat children with cancer and blood diseases. Recently, NBK donated KD 13 million to the ministry of health to build a new full equipped medical building to increase the hospital’s capacity.
Helping and supporting children and their families are integral parts of the Bank’s culture and practices that reflect its deep commitment to its corporate social responsibility. Since its establishment, NBK has been at the forefront of supporting Kuwait’s community through a range of education, health, sports and social initiatives. The establishment of NBK Children Hospital at Al Sabah Medical Area stands as one of many NBK initiatives for children.
NBK has undertaken several initiatives to support the healthcare sector in Kuwait, including the establishment of NBK’s Children’s Hospital at Al Sabah Medical Area, which provides medical care to underprivileged children. The hospital houses a number of clinics specialized in leukemia treatments, neurology, psychiatry and pediatrics as well as surgeries and operating theatres. In line with NBK Children Hospital’s strategy to provide integrated care for patients, the hospital’s management embeds the wellbeing of children and their families as a key part of the treatment programs and healthcare services.
To this end, the hospital organizes many various activities to ensure continuous communication with patients and their families, as well as to raise patients’ satisfaction and encourage them to socialize and distract from the pains of treatment. On Mondays of every week all year round, the hospital holds a fun activity for children treated at NBK’s Specialized Hospital for Children, including inpatients and outpatients visiting the hospital for the necessary medical examinations to follow up on their health conditions.
NBK has also provided an indoor cinema for inpatient children to watch their favorite movies with their siblings. NBK also organizes ‘I Dream to Be’ program, which is the first of its kind for children in Kuwait hospitals who are facing life-threatening conditions. The initiative helps the children realize their ‘dreams’ in an effort to improve their emotional and psychological wellbeing and help them fight the diseases. Through this program NBK helped many patients realize their dreams over the past years.
The hospital also provides a number of integrated social programs for children and their families as well as the medical staff to ensure an integrated benefit for all. This includes organizing weekly entertainment activities and the selection of "champion of the week”, in addition to choosing "the nurse of the month”. The hospital also organizes regular activities including "reading corner”, library, reading sessions, visits and entertainment activities. This comes within the endeavors to support and care not only for children during their treatment journey, but also for the attending medical staff.