Multilaw members raise $4,500 for Philippine based children's charity - Kythe Foundation

 

This week, at the Asia Pacific Regional Meeting Welcome Dinner and reception, attendees had the pleasure of being joined by the Kythe Foundation who took the time to speak about the amazing work they do.

Kythe (kayth) is a Philippine-based non-stock, non-profit organisation founded by Maria Carmen “Icar” S. Castro and Maria Fatima “Girlie” Garcia-Lorenzo, two Psychology graduate students from the Ateneo de Manila University, in 1992. The organisation is staffed by professionals --- certified child life specialists, nurses, social workers and psychologists – headed by Girlie Lorenzo, the first Filipina to be awarded a fellowship from the Ashoka Innovators for the Public international peer network for social entrepreneurship.

Kythe, derived from a Scottish word, “to manifest one self”, embodies what the team believes in—that through acts of sharing and togetherness, they can promote healing and growth. Its vision is to inspire hope, create a culture of caring and make the hospital a happy place for the indigent children battling cancer and chronic illnesses.

Kythe aims to promote change by advocating psychosocial health as part of the holistic care for children through its flagship Child Life Programme. The efforts were recognised in 2003, receiving the elusive People Power Award from former president Corazon Aquino.

In 2013, the Foundation fortified its evidence-based practice through a study entitled “Addressing the Psychosocial Needs of the Hospitalized Child: The Role of the Child Life Program.” This pre- and post-test study showed that there was a decrease in anxiety among children who underwent the Child Life Program. This study was presented and warmly accepted at the 4th ASEAN Regional Union of Psychological Societies and the 50th Annual Convention of the Psychological Association of the Philippines.

As many of you know Multilaw runs a billable hour project at each conference, we raise funds from Multilaw member firms and Multilaw members individually to allow Multilaw, as an organisation, to make a significant cash donation to a local charity. Kythe was this year’s Asia Pacific selected charity and we are pleased to announce that Multilaw raised $4500 for the foundation. We would like to thank all the Multilaw members that donated.

For more information on Kythe please visit their website: http://kythe.org/ .