Sandwell children’s ward using mini-Mercedes to soothe young patients’ nerves

avy Saini, centre, before having a tooth removed, with, left to right, his mother Sundeep Saini, Jim Morrissey, Advanced Theatre Practitioner, Sophie Winstanley, Student Nurse, Abigail Hanlon, Play Specialist and Amanda Winwood, Fundraising Manager for Your Trust Charity at Sandwell Hospital

Staff at Sandwell Hospital, in West Bromwich, hope the sit-in vehicles will help drive away pre-op nerves for youngsters undergoing minor operations.

Modelled on a similar scheme at a hospital in California, the initiative has been backed by Halfords, which has donated two £150 cars, with support from the NHS Trust's charity fundraisers.

Youngsters who fancy being driven to theatre will be strapped into the battery-powered cars, controlled by play specialists and nurses.

Three-year-old Gavy Saini, of West Bromwich, became the first patient to be driven to his operation while undergoing a tooth extraction at the hospital.

His mother Sundeep, 28, said: "This is a wonderful idea. Gavy wasn't really looking forward to coming into hospital, but when he saw the car, it definitely put him at ease.

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Gavy in the new toy car

"It also lifted his spirits more too. He already has a similar car at home and loves driving round in it.

"When he goes to the hairdressers they have little cars the children can sit in and that's helped him to relax. I think having something like this in hospital is a great idea that will help so many children when they come here for treatment."

The idea to introduce the cars into the hospital's children's ward came from the hospital's Your Trust Charity.

Fundraising manager Amanda Winwood, who had seen similar cars being used in a hospital in America, said: "I wanted to introduce the cars to our hospital so it would make the experience of being in hospital or having surgery a little bit better for our younger patients.

"Having an operation can be daunting especially if you are a child. So I thought this would help to distract them as they headed into surgery.