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What We do
The Humour Foundation is a charity dedicated to promoting the health benefits of humour. International research has found there are physiological and psychological benefits of laughter. Doses of humour help relieve fear and stress and aid recovery. The whole hospital community benefits – patients, families and staff.
Founded in 1997 by Dr Peter Spitzer, a general practitioner, and Jean-Paul Bell, a performer, the Foundation’s core project is Clown Doctors™. With the Smile around the World project, clowns have helped people in Afghanistan and East Timor find their smiles again. The Humour Foundation provides speakers and runs workshops on humour and health through the Laughter Works™ program.
Laughter is the prescription to help patients cope with hospital. Clown Doctors parody the hospital routine. They lighten the serious side of the hospital, bringing support, fun and laughter. Clown Doctors can help distract children during treatment or help them forget for a moment that they are ill. There are more than 50 Clown Doctors nationwide who touch the lives of over 100,000 people in 20 hospitals and on outreach visits each year. They are professional performers, trained to work in the sensitive hospital setting.These services are provided to the hospitals at no charge.
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