Apr
01
Posted by Champion for Children's Health
Speak Now for Kids is celebrating Medicaid Matters for Kids Mondays with posts highlighting the importance of Medicaid in children’s access to health care. This week, we spoke with Vika’s mom, Ashlee.
Vika was born with TAR Syndrome and faces challenges every day enduring life with a chronic condition. We adopted Vika from the Republic of Georgia almost a year ago and we’re excited for the care that she can receive in the United States; she’s currently under great care at Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital. She relies on multiple specialists, including hematologists, orthodontists and endocrinologists.
I was nervous to apply for Medicaid after we adopted Vika. I felt like I was cheating the system because we agreed that we could afford Vika’s care when we signed her adoption paperwork. Fortunately, I had a job that had medical insurance benefits, but they did not cover all her expenses. Medicaid has been very beneficial to Vika. Even with private insurance, her care wasn’t completely covered—we have paid thousands of dollars. For instance, children with TAR syndrome can have congenital heart problems so it was recommended that she have a “simple” echocardiogram to check. After primary insurance, we still owed over $1,000 just for this one test.
Mar
30
Posted by Champion for Children's Health
We’re especially grateful for the brilliant and selfless doctors working every day at the children’s hospitals across the nation. In recognition of Doctor’s Day, our Speak Now for Kids families shared their thank-you messages to their talented doctors.
Mar
29
Posted by Champion for Children's Health
Speak Now for Kids honors child life professionals who are dedicated to helping children with difficult health circumstances. The following testimonial is courtesy of the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP).
Laura Mitchell, BS, CCLS, is a child life specialist at Nemours A.I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Delaware. Laura works with a multidisciplinary health care team to facilitate procedures requiring sedation and increase coping and patient and family satisfaction. She also aims to decrease stress, anxiety, pain and other negative feelings or effects related to the hospital experience.
Laura believes that facilitating coping skills should be an integral part of all procedures, not just those requiring sedation. She and her team incorporate a structured, individualized approach to sedation and use both pharmacological and non-pharmacological methods to ensure that procedures are completed safely with minimal pain and anxiety. Some patients may only require pre-procedural preparation before induction while others may benefit from education, play and procedural support.
Mar
28
Posted by Champion for Children's Health
We learned our son, Elijah, was diagnosed with Trisomy 18 (T18) prenatally. Our doctor explained "what it all means," then handed several sheets of printed paperwork on T18. Every doctor said the same thing, "there's very little, if any, life expectancy for T18 babies." They even discouraged us from learning about the condition ourselves. And with no knowledge of T18, we went to Google and the search results were horrific. We felt hopeless, frustrated and angry.
Elijah was born on March 28, 2017 with full T18, a genetic condition where he has an extra chromosome in every cell of the body. We were told to enjoy our limited time with Elijah as he would probably die soon. We did not receive routine newborn care; instead, we met the bereavement team, palliative doctors and hospice staff. There are many challenges to care for Elijah, mainly because questions regarding his care have limited answers. We still experience challenges caring for Elijah now, but we are not afraid to seek answers. We're not afraid to find a physician who knows. We're not afraid to walk away from a physician who doesn't know.
Mar
23
Posted by Champion for Children's Health
Speak Now for Kids honors child life professionals who are dedicated to helping children with difficult health circumstances. The following testimonial is courtesy of the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP).
Jessie Gordon, M.Ed., CCLS, CIMI, is the child life specialist for the PICU at Norton Children’s Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. Her unit consists of 26 intensive care beds, some of which are dedicated to cardiac patients, and she also follows pediatric advanced heart failure and transplant patients throughout their stay.
Jessie coordinates the SibStars programming for siblings of chronic patients, many of whom are intubated, on a ventilator or sedated. She helps children understand a sibling’s diagnosis and encourages interaction and bonding. Always considering the sibling’s developmental stage and comfort level, Jessie helps them make meaning of the process, affirms their feelings, and helps them feel included and useful—often with simple gestures such as decorating the room or choosing a special blanket. A successful outcome might be a sibling climbing up in bed next to a brother or sister after weeks of being unwilling to enter the room.
Mar
22
Posted by Champion for Children's Health
When Krista McHale was driving, she could tell when her 4-year-old son, Colin, was sleeping. The sound of snoring coming from the back seat always gave it away. Colin’s snoring, along with sleep apnea, was cause for concern. After a sleep study, Colin’s pediatrician recommended he have his tonsils removed.
Krista was informed that Colin’s surgery would be performed at the Surgical Center at Memorial Care Miller Children’s & Women’s Hospital Long Beach.
Krista and Colin arrived at Miller Children’s & Women’s at 6:30 a.m. on the day of surgery. The experience would take them both by surprise.
“I was expecting, it being a children's hospital, a certain amount of kid-friendliness during the whole process,” says Krista. “However, my expectations were far exceeded from the moment we arrived.”
After the check-in process, Krista and Colin headed to the pre-operative playroom, where they would meet their surgical team.
Mar
21
Posted by Champion for Children's Health
Speak Now for Kids honors child life professionals who are dedicated to helping children with difficult health circumstances. The following testimonial is courtesy of Hoops Family Children’s Hospital (HFCH) in Huntington, West Virginia.
Tenley Johnson lay quietly in her bed in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at the Hoops Family Children’s Hospital (HFCH) at Cabell Huntington Hospital. The room is filled with balloons and stuffed animals that would put a smile on any child’s face. But today, what made Tinley light up wasn’t a toy or video game— it was a visit from Stephanie Cape, certified child life specialist at HFCH.
“I love Stephanie to come into my room and play with me,” said the 4-year-old with a bright smile. Diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type 1, Tenley makes frequent visits to the hospital. On this day, she was fighting off a virus.
“If I can help bring calm, make the machines fade away and help make a child feel comfortable in a not-so-comfortable environment, then I’m doing my job,” said Cape.
Mar
18
Posted by Champion for Children's Health
Huggie is a 2-year-old Labrador retriever facility dog, provided by Canine Companions for Independence, and he supports many children receiving treatments at the UC Davis Pediatric Infusion Center. Dogs like Huggie are a tremendous help in normalizing and motivating pediatric patients. Their presence aids in reducing fear, stress, anxiety or pain the patients may be feeling.
In this photo, 4-year-old Bill is getting his central line accessed. “My son hates ‘pokies,’ as we call the needle sticks” says mom, Victoria. “But Huggie helps tremendously by lying next to Bill. He is instrumental in distracting Bill during these sometimes-painful treatments.”
Mar
14
Posted by Champion for Children's Health
When Henry laughs it is a full-body, head-to-toe roar that can fill a room. His laughter is something that the dialysis nurses at Riley Hospital for Children have come to love. It’s a laughter that is easily brought out and one that brings smiles to everyone around him.
His sense of humor and spirit are inspiring for anyone, but they are even more impressive considering what he has been through in his short life. Born with end-stage renal disease, he’s had 35 surgeries by the time he was 3 1/2 years old. The renal disease also meant undergoing dialysis four hours a day, four days a week. More importantly, he needed a new kidney.
Mar
12
Posted by Champion for Children's Health
Speak Now for Kids honors child life professionals who are dedicated to helping children with difficult health circumstances. The following testimonial is courtesy of Children’s Mercy Kansas City in Kansas City, Missouri.
Jenna Simpson is a child life specialist at Children’s Mercy Kansas City and has spearheaded innovative interventions to help patients living with Cystic Fibrosis (CF) stay healthy and feel more like other kids.
Children with CF can be hospitalized for a week or two at a time when being treated for chronic issues associated with the genetic lung disease. Many inpatients are on nephrotoxic medications and need to manage fluid intake to prevent the risk of acute kidney injury. Jenna worked with Children’s Mercy pharmacists and dieticians to create fluid and drinking charts to help patients visually monitor daily intake.