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About MediCinema

Cinema-based healthcare programmes inside hospitals

We are a unique charity operating at the heart of NHS hospitals. Our therapeutic cinema experiences improve the mental, emotional and physical wellbeing of patients and their loved ones.

The MediCinema Experience

Being unwell and in hospital can be challenging, frightening and often isolating for people who are already feeling vulnerable. Leaving the wards to experience a film screening in one of our cinemas makes a positive and lasting impact, giving patients – and families - the strength to cope.

With room for their hospital beds, wheelchairs, and medical equipment, we provide a safe, supportive and inclusive environment for our patients.

Our services help to reduce pain, anxiety, stress, and feelings of isolation, to giving those in hospital a sense of normality and being connected to others.

Thanks to the support of major film studios and distributors we screen the latest releases for free, from blockbusters to smaller releases, comedy, action and romance.

Core Inpatient Screening Programme

A minimum of four screenings takes place at each MediCinema every week, with screenings for adults and paediatrics depending on the population of the hospital.

Our patient journey starts at the wards, moving through the hospital corridors in their beds or wheelchairs to enter our bright and welcoming cinema spaces, while chatting to and being looked after by the Cinema Manager, volunteers, and nurses. Being immersed in the power of a big-screen experience transports people away from their everyday reality. Our research shows that patients feel less anxious, less isolated – and less pain.



“You turned a traumatic event into something Nell will remember as the time she has a massive surprise treat at the hospital cinema, instead of the time she had to go back for another operation.”

Nell’s mum Joanne

Tailored Screening Programme

Our Tailored Screenings are built for specific in and out-patient clinical groups. They provide a unique opportunity to bring people together, with the films chosen helping to open up conversations which may otherwise have been difficult to have. We organise screenings for support groups such as teens and young adults with cancer, young peoples’ mental health, and sickle cell amongst many others.

Peter is part of the Advanced Prostate Cancer Club at Guy’s Hospital.

“It is a great opportunity for us to talk, share our experiences and reassure each other. Some of the men in the group don’t have partners and I imagine they can be very lonely, so it can be a real solid support. We meet for the film and stay afterwards to talk, and it is such an uplifting experience. I can’t help but think about how valuable the concept is.”

Personal Screening Programme

We work closely with clinical teams to identify and arrange personal screenings for patients who are unable to attend our regular screenings. Whether they are immunocompromised, have specific or complex needs or as part of their palliative care journey, we can provide the opportunity for the patient and their family to spend precious time together and create invaluable positive memories with loved ones.

“I arrived at hospital depressed and very down, I was amazed when palliative care told me such a facility existed. It was like being thrown a lifeline. I was ‘me’ again. You've no idea how precious that is when you might only have months to live.”

Yasmin

Moments that Matter with Disney

The power of storytelling and special shared moments can help build resilience for children who are having a tough time in hospital and who are also socially isolated. We are proud to have a long-term strategic partnership with Disney, where together we create ‘Moments that Matter’ for children at our sites. From film character visits, music and movement sessions and ‘fun in the foyer’ events in our cinemas with balloon and face painting artists, we also design and distribute film themed activity packs to hospitals around the country. These packs are specially created to increase the resilience and confidence of pediatric patients and are used in conjunction with the hospitals’ Play Teams.

Our Hospital Partners

  • MediCinema at Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary

  • MediCinema at Glasgow’s Royal Hospital for Children/Queen Elizabeth University Hospital

  • MediCinema at Newport’s Serennu Children’s Centre

  • MediCinema at London’s Guy’s Hospital

  • MediCinema at London’s Chelsea and Westminster Hospital

  • MediCinema at London’s St Thomas’ Hospital (Pop-Up)

  • Coming Soon – MediCinema at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital

New MediCinema Sites

Our goal is to make our cinema-based programmes available to more NHS patients by creating new MediCinemas in Trusts across the UK.

We use space within a hospital Trust to create our on-site state of the art cinemas. Current projects range from converting existing lecture theatres to creating whole new shells in a hospital atrium. In partnership with hospital charities, MediCinema raise and fund the development of the cinema. Sites are maintained and managed on an ongoing basis by the expert MediCinema team including nurses and volunteers

Plan view of the forthcoming MediCinema at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital.

Meet the MediCinema Team

My favourite film is...
Paddington 2

Sam Bethune

Marketing and Communications Executive

My favourite film is...
Avatar

Mary Blake

Operations and Finance Coordinator

My favourite film is...
Jerry Maguire

Lynda Bridger

Head of Finance and Company Secretary

My favourite film is...
Dirty Dancing

Lysette Cohen

Director of Communications

My favourite film is...
Il Postino

Donatella Del Monaco

Executive Assistant

My favourite film is...
Babe

Paul Giggal

Chief Operating Officer

My favourite film is...
Magnolia

Simon Hickson

Cinema Manager, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital

My favourite film is...
The Sure Thing

Nicola Hill

Cinema Manager, Guy’s Hospital

My favourite film is...
Spider-Man: Homecoming

Jon Jones

Technical Assistant, Serennu Children’s Centre

My favourite film is...
Groundhog Day

Beth Keane

Head of Service Design and Impact

My favourite film is...
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

Shirley Laverick-Stovin

Deputy Cinema Manager, Royal Victoria Infirmary

My favourite film is...
The Third Man

Colin Lawrence

Chief Executive Officer

My favourite film is...
Brazil

Jamie Lynch

Director of Development

My favourite film is...
She

John Martin

Duty Screening Manager, St Thomas’ Hospital

My favourite film is...
Stand By Me

Mike Newcombe

National Cinema Manager

My favourite film is...
The Departed

Mabs Rahman

Development Manager

My favourite film is...
Talk to Me

Joss Spires

Cinema Manager, Royal Victoria Infirmary

My favourite film is...
Titanic

Kate Thomson

Cinema Manager, Royal Hospital for Children/Queen Elizabeth University Hospital

My favourite film is...
Signs

Eve Wills-Wilson

Fundraising Assistant Manager and Marketing Officer

Our Nurses

Patient care is central to our services, and we have caring and committed teams of MediCinema nurses at all our hospital sites to look after them. These nurses are paid by MediCinema.

The personal and professional care provided by these nurses enable those with varied and complex needs to benefit from the MediCinema. They also give patients and their family members the peace of mind and reassurance that they will remain looked after during the film screenings.

The Volunteers

The majority of the dedicated people working to run our services are volunteers, with close to 100 people across our sites giving their time for free. Collecting patients from the wards in their beds and wheelchairs, chatting to them along the way to and from the MediCinema, to practical tasks like helping clean before every screening to ensure our cinemas are to the highest Infection Control standards, we cannot thank them enough for their dedication and care. We simply could not run our services without them.