Day 4: Hospital (Heart Month)

How do I adequately express my deep appreciation for Seattle Children's Hospital? Every aspect of this place has been a wonderful blessing to our family! I can honestly list our few kerfaffles on one hand. From silly things like clear (but also fun) signage to really important things like personal phone calls from our various specialists, it is so clear that much thought and effort and money has been put into their care for families (not just patients!).

I'm on a number of heart groups/forums on Facebook/online and I can't even tell you how many times different parents have posted questions and concerns that frankly I have never had to ask or worry about because SCH is just so on top of Job's care.



I remember, while pregnant, researching hospitals that would take HLHS kids. I found the parameters I was supposed to be looking for: number of Norwoods performed each year and mortality rate for this surgery and so on. While Boston Children's and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia really pioneered CHD care, a few other hospitals have made pediatric cardiac care their speciality as well. I was so amazed to realize that, of all the places in the world, we lived a mere 43 miles away from one such hospital. How wonderfully providential! So many families have to travel (and then live) out of state for months while receiving care for their heart kiddos. With Seattle traffic it often takes two hours to get there, but I'm so happy to listen to audio books/sermons and make that comparatively short drive!

Job was born at Tacoma General and then spent his first 36 hours in the Mary Bridge NICU before transferring to SCH and also did one inpatient stay in the PICU there last year. I'm grateful for the therapy services we receive through MultiCare as well! But when we had to decide who would direct Job's cardiac care it was easy to pick SCH. I'm so grateful to have the continuity of service and access to so many specialities by staying in their system.

In many places around the country, patients with CHDs who are now adults must be seen at children's hospitals (because there are so few adult CHD programs in existence because adults with CHDs are a relatively new phenomenon!). UW, however, has a great adult program that Job will someday transfer to. I'm grateful that we will have this opportunity! but the day we transfer from SCH will be a very sad day indeed.

I  SCH.

#heartmonth #day4 #hospital