Chamberlain Group and Comer Children's Hospital Unveil Innovative STEAM-based Therapeutic Intervention

First In-Hospital Maker Space and Cart in the Chicagoland Area

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Sep 23, 2021, 08:30 ET

CHICAGO, Sept. 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Chamberlain Group, a global leader in access solutions, and University of Chicago Medicine Comer Children's Hospital, a top-tier children's hospital serving Chicagoland and beyond, are announcing the launch of the ONETEAM Mobile Maker Space. ONETEAM Mobile Maker Space is an innovative STEAM-based therapeutic intervention that helps children heal through creating, building, and learning. Comer Children's Hospital patients are the first in the Chicagoland area with access to the unique intervention, which has been made possible through support from Chamberlain Group's Good Corporate Citizenship program.

Click here to view the introduction video of the ONETEAM Mobile Maker Space.

"We are proud to be able to support Comer Children's Hospital by providing access to a novel STEAM-based maker space," said JoAnna Sohovich, CEO, Chamberlain Group. "The conditions that limit our ability to celebrate this special milestone also amplify the isolation that the hospitalized children feel. We are happy that the Mobile Maker Space is available to provide creative outlets for them during this especially challenging time."

The idea that maker spaces can provide a unique therapeutic opportunity for children coping with challenging circumstances, anxiety, or trauma, is one of the most exciting new concepts in the field of child development. The Comer Children's Hospital Child Life Specialists are now able to provide this new intervention to patients with the ONETEAM Mobile Maker Space, a cart holding equipment and material that can be brought into hospital rooms to engage minds, teach skills, and encourage collaboration.

"We are excited to be able to offer the STEAM-based maker space because it helps kids tap into their creativity and build anything they dream of, regardless of whatever their limitations might be," said Jennie Ott, Director of Child Life and Family Education, Comer Children's Hospital. "The children we care for are sometimes at the hospital for months at a time, and now more than ever, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the scope of our programming will be even more impactful for isolated patients."

Comer Children's, a 172-bed children's hospital in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood, was established at UChicago Medicine in 2005 thanks to a generous donation from Gary Comer, founder of Lands' End, and his wife, Frances. The facility is home to the only Level 1 pediatric trauma center on the city's South Side. It includes a 30-bed pediatric intensive care unit, one of the state's busiest neonatal intensive units and an array of general, specialty and subspecialty care for children of all ages. As a major tertiary referral center, Comer Children's admits about 5,000 patients and accommodates nearly 37,000 outpatient clinics visits annually from the Chicago area, the Midwest and around the world, offering a range of services from general care to groundbreaking treatments for the most complex medical conditions.

Good Corporate Citizenship is a Chamberlain Group company value demonstrating passion to pursue activities and contributions that positively impact the communities where we work and live. With the backing of The Duchossois Family Foundation, the company's Good Corporate Citizenship program offers employees curated opportunities to volunteer their time or treasure to causes that benefit our communities, promote equality, and protect the environment. Support for the ONETEAM Mobile Maker Space was made possible through contributions from the Good Corporate Citizenship program and Wellbeing activities over the last three years.

About Chamberlain Group
Chamberlain Group is a global leader in smart access solutions across residential and commercial properties. Our prominent brands LiftMaster®, Chamberlain®, Merlin® and Grifco® are found in millions of residential and commercial access applications across the globe. Our innovative products and partnerships, powered by our myQ® smart ecosystem, provide customers with smart access solutions to move safely through garages, homes, communities, businesses and storage facilities. Chamberlain Group pioneered vehicle-to-home connectivity through patented technology aboard hundreds of millions of vehicles. Chamberlain Group owns Controlled Products Systems Group, a leading wholesale distributor of perimeter access control equipment in the U.S., and Systems, LLC, one of North America's leading dock leveler manufacturers. Blackstone recently signed an agreement to acquire Chamberlain Group, with an anticipated close by yearend. Further information is available @ www.chamberlaingroup.com. Follow Chamberlain Group on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.