Every Tuesday, an 8-year-old poodle/golden retriever mix clocks in for his shift at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital. Known to staff and patients as “Dogtor” Cooper, he even has business cards made up by his owner and handler, hospital volunteer Eric Weston.

Cooper is part of a robust therapy dog program at the hospital and one of seven dogs certified to visit patients on a regular basis. This week, the editors are joined by reporter Cailin Riley along with Weston and Robin Page, Stony Brook Southampton Hospital’s director of Patient Experience/Volunteer Services, to talk about the therapy dog program and the joy it brings. Also joining in is Cooper, but honestly, he stays pretty quiet because he’s a good boy.