Česky
The project has been informally rooted in the Hořovice hospital since May 2014, when the nurses of the Hořovice neonatal ward Bc. Romana Medková and Dagmar Kühle were first introduced to the Life in a Briefcase project. "The aim is to equip a child who is separated from his biological parents after birth with a suitcase containing information and "souvenirs" related to the period of the first days after birth," says Mgr. Kamila Přádová, head nurse of the Hořovice neonatal unit. "Since then, we have started this project in our ward in cooperation with Nutricie. In less than two years, we have distributed nearly ten suitcases to children who were subsequently adopted. Since today, we are officially cooperating with the LA VIDA LOCA Foundation, which is dedicated to the project and tries to involve all maternity hospitals in the Czech Republic," added the Hořovice nurse.
On behalf of the LA VIDA LOCA Foundation, Iva Říhová and Martina Wojtylová, the founders of the project, came to Hořovice and presented the neonatal unit with ten suitcases and a fully equipped printer for printing materials for children in the suitcases. Both ladies from the foundation did not hide their admiration for the luxurious equipment not only for the neonatal ward but also for the entire hospital in Hořovice. Up to 500 children a year in the Czech Republic end up in an infant institution or foster care after birth. "During their first years of life, they often find themselves in several places of foster care and information related to the beginning of their lives can easily get lost. That is why, thanks to the project, these children are given a suitcase that holds the most important thing for them - information related to their arrival into the world," says Ms Říhová.
