Steve Wright:

“We have lots of entertainment and distractions for our patients, who are confined to wards and unable to move about the hospital. Placing lures around the hospital, when children cannot leave their rooms, may create unrealistic expectations, and subsequently, much disappointment.” [Royal Children's Hospital spokesperson]

Simply put, a Pokéstop just out of a child’s reach will have the opposite effect the well-intended Trainer was hoping for.

“While we understand everyone’s good intentions, we would prefer if people did not place ‘lures’ at the RCH,” the spokesperson concluded. “We know everyone means well, and appreciate that the kids are in their thoughts.”

This is in contrast to the story last week out of C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital in Michigan that is using Pokemon Go to help get patients out of their rooms.

Children’s hospitals are created and designed specifically for kids, not only in the medicine they provide but also the environment in which care is delivered. The child life specialists [1] will figure out creative and appropriate ways to use new technologies like Pokemon Go for patients.

Child life specialists are people who work in children’s hospitals that do many things to make a child’s hospital stay better. One of their responsibilities is providing developmentally appropriate and safe play. ↩