"Laugh It Up" by Kathy Grant Westbrook. Our State Magazine, January 2005.

For Ruth Hamilton, laughter is serious business. It eases the suffering of hospital patients, lowers stress levels in the corporate world, and contributes to the well-being of communities. Hamilton promotes the use of humor in these settings, with help from a dedicated group of volunteers, through Carolina Health and Humor Association — Carolina Ha Ha, for short — a nonprofit organization she co-founded in 1986.

The seeds for Carolina Ha Ha were planted when Hamilton visited the cancer unit at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, while working in an auditing position with the hospital. "I saw a great need there for people to have interesting things to do while they were having their cancer treatment, which in those days was very long," she says.

It was only natural that she would choose humor as a means of distracting the patients. After all, not only have studies documented the physical effects of laughter (such as lower blood pressure and a reduction in pain and stress), but Hamilton experienced the healing effects of humor firsthand, using it as a survival mechanism while growing up with younger (but bigger) twin brothers who bullied her. Back then, she relied on sarcasm, but, she says, "my humor is now very compassionate." She is one of those people who can almost always find something to smile or laugh about. "I get jokes that nobody else does," she says. "Or I’ll laugh about things that some people worry about. I find certain situations hilarious, especially when people try to be too serious."

The Best Medicine
To launch Carolina Ha Ha, Hamilton, who has a master’s degree in education, teamed up with Dr. David Kleinbaugh, an epidemiologist interested in studying the relationship between humor and health. Shortly after founding the organization, Hamilton implemented the program for which it has become best known, the Duke Humor Project. She worked with Louise Bost, who was then director of oncology recreation therapy at Duke, to arrange for cancer patients to receive bedside doses of humor delivered by skilled volunteers manning a Laugh Mobile (a rolling cart stocked with everything from rubber chickens to giant plastic scissors to funny books and movies). A similar program at the North Carolina Memorial Hospital (in the University of North Carolina Hospitals system in Chapel Hill) has Carolina Ha Ha volunteers taking a Laugh Mobile around to patients in the Rehabilitation Unit.

Laugh Mobile volunteers — who aren’t above wearing red, rubber noses or wiggly antennae — entertain patients by telling jokes, performing yo-yo tricks, making balloon animals, or just generally hamming it up — whatever it takes to get a smile. They’ve even been known to belt out a rousing rendition of "I’ve Been Working on the Railroad" to elicit a grin. Patients are encouraged to get in on the action, urged by volunteers to do "smile push-ups," juggle scarves, and don goofy glasses. And more than one nurse has been on the receiving end of water gun ammunition thanks to patients wielding "weapons" supplied by volunteers.

"It’s not ‘funny, ha-ha, laughter’ humor all the time," Hamilton admits. "It’s sharing a pleasant moment with them. The main thing we want to do is help them feel positive about something."

Patients are invited to check out books and movies from the Laugh Mobile. What funny film might Hamilton recommend? "My favorite of all time is Being There with Peter Sellers. I also like Crazy People with Dudley Moore," she says. Waking Ned Devine and Hairspray also top her list.

The Laugh Mobile gives patients opportunities to engage in playful activities and lighthearted banter, yet the program is more than fun and games. It is, in fact, a form of therapy. Prior to arriving at a patient’s bedside, volunteers are given background information about the patient so they’ll know what to expect and how best to proceed. Following the visit, volunteers record details of the interaction, making the information available to medical staff.

Book Tour
The Laugh Mobile isn’t the only means by which Carolina Ha Ha volunteers interact with patients. A Story Mobile makes the rounds at the North Carolina Children’s Hospital (also in the UNC Hospitals system). This program centers around 150 popular children’s books, including the entire Dr. Seuss collection. "Our readers dress as storybook characters, and they read stories to children and interact with them," says Hamilton. It isn’t meant to be an educational experience, she says, rather it is designed to show children "a delightful time."

Story Mobile volunteer Alan Happ insists on reading only Dr. Seuss books when he’s manning the cart. Why? "I’m tall, and the hat fits," he jokes. "It makes [the children] laugh." His favorite Seuss book to share is If I Ran the Circus, but he gladly obliges young listeners’ requests, such as The Lorax or The Butter Battle Book (try saying that three times fast). Often, Happ is rewarded with a hug after a reading, so it’s hard to say who benefits most from the experience — patient or volunteer.

Dr. Seuss is a favorite not just with Happ but with the entire Story Mobile team. Those involved with the program commemorated the 100th anniversary of Seuss’s birthday last March with a "Seussentennial" celebration. During the four-hour read-in, folks from throughout the North Carolina Children’s Hospital appeared on the lobby stage to read favorite Seuss tales.