‘I do mother theraphy’: Patch Adams in orphanage in Gyumri

Famous American physician, comedian, social activist, and clown Patch Adams and his team didn’t perform anything during their visit to the Gyumri orphanage for disabled children. Instead, they did what mothers usually do.

‘We were with children who were severely disabled. No jokes, no performance. We hold the children,’ Patch Adams said.

He also added that what he does can perhaps be called ‘mother theraphy,’ but the word ‘theraphy’ here insults mothers and motherhood.

‘When you are a mother, what do you do with your child? You love with them, you play with them, you give them nature, you give them art, you try to make a safe house. This is not theraphy. Unless you want to say ‘mother theraphy.’ It insults mothers. A mother doesn’t need ‘mother theraphy.’

‘When you see me in my work you just see my mother. My goal is to be like my mother. What do mothers do? They make you laugh. Mother’s don’t think mother theraphy. Or play theraphy. They think healthy human action,’ he said.

Patch Adams is going to spend 2 days in Gyumri, during which he will visit the orphanages and children's hospitals of the city. In the orphanage, which the famous clown and his team visited first, there are 130 children with different disabilities. According to Anna Gevorgyan, director of the orphanage, most children have different central nervous system diseases that affect either the spinal cord or brain.

Patch Adams came to Armenia on May 18 and is planning to spend a week here. His visit was organized by charitable foundation IDeA in cooperation with health structures and social services of the country.

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