New partnership between RBWH and Queensland Rugby
QR Reds players Will Chambers and Quade Cooper paid special attention to their handling when they visited Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital to announce the revival of a fund-raising partnership dating back to the late 1800s.
Team-mate Digby Ioane was too nervous to have a go but Chambers and Cooper stepped up to nurse premature babies Nathan & Caleb O’Brien, who were flown down from Biggenden after beiung delivered by mother Kate at 25 weeks, 15 weeks premature.
Babies born this early have an approximate 75% survival rate but the boys have now celebrated their 100th day at the hospital and will be heading home soon.
The players, along with team-mates Rod Davies, Jake Schatz and Leroy Houston spent more than an hour visiting the special care nursery which cares for around 1600 babies each year.
Queensland Rugby and RBWH have joined forces to raise money for the hospital and work to promote healthier lifestyles through sport and community activity.
The Hospital's relationship with Queensland Rugby dates back to the late 1800s when a charity match was staged to raise money. The trophy used for that challenge match, the ‘Hospital Cup’, remains a prestigious trophy in Queensland Rugby today.
Queensland Rugby will hold a range of events including race days and corporate functions to support the RBWH Foundation in 2010 and 2011.
