The Italian government is throwing its weight behind clown therapy, the treatment championed by American doctor Patch Adams to speed up recovery for children in hospital.
Equal Opportunities Minister Mara Carfagna said two million euros had been set aside to finance the project, while clowns were being sought on the department's website.
''The positive impact of clowning allows sick children to deal with their conditions to greater effect, reducing anxiety and fear and turning negative emotions into positive ones,'' Carfagna said.
Clowns are already used in some Italian hospitals, such as the Bambino Gesu Children's Hospital in Rome.
Hospital coordinator Alberto Ugazio said the clowns, who are trained volunteers, went on regular clown rounds' to help cheer up children on the wards.
''They work as part of the team with the doctors and nurses, visiting the young patients every day,'' he said.
Volunteers are taught the techniques of clowning on courses inspired by the theories of Adams, who introduced the therapy as part of the cure for children recovering in hospitals in the United States.
The 63-year-old's life was made into a 1998 comedy-drama film, Patch Adams, with Robin Williams playing the doctor.
