Celebrating the important things
All parents treasure the memories of their child’s milestones. Whether they are the first steps or words, birthdays or graduations, these are all important moments and events in the life of a child and their family. Many times, they’re celebrated with well- deserved parties or presents.
At Cook Children’s, the Child Life team ensures that all milestones, big and small, are celebrated and recognized just as they would be outside the medical center’s walls.
“All over the medical center, we have little celebrations for a lot of things,” said Child Life specialist Kat Davitt, who works with patients and families in Cook Children’s Hematology and Oncology Center. “Like, swallowing a pill for the first time or maybe kids who have been here for a long time are sitting up independently now. We try to recognize all those little moments because kids don’t get those back.”
“A family might not realize something is a big deal,” said Kat. “Say, it’s a patient’s first birthday and the family says that they’ll celebrate it when they get home. Well, not everyone is promised a chance to celebrate it when they get home. I’ve had parents later thank us for telling them to celebrate on the day because they thought they had time and they didn’t.”
In some cases, parents aren’t able to make it up to the medical center for their child’s actual birthday due to work or lack of transportation.
“When that happens, we try to take pictures of the patient, then print them out and hang them around the room,” said Child Life specialist Anne Stankus. “That way, the parent will have that memory to look back at and see what happened on that day.”
In Cook Children’s Transitional Care Unit and Rehab Care Unit (TCU/RCU), patients are recovering from life-changing neurological injuries or illnesses. They might be relearning to walk, eat or breathe on their own again.
“End-of-stay parties are a really big deal up here,” said Anne, who works in TCU/RCU with her facility dog, Brienne. “They have a new normal that they’re going home to, and their life is completely different. We try to really celebrate what they’ve accomplished here.”
Two weeks before a child is set to go home, Anne will set out a pillowcase that is specially made by a generous volunteer. During that time, staff members will decorate the pillowcase with words of encouragement and art customized to the patient’s likes and interests.
While these celebrations are important for the patients and a great source of inspiration, they also are important for parents, who are often nervous or intimidated at the prospect of returning home with their child.
“Our families are so nervous to go home on that last day here,” said Anne. “They’ve gotten used to their child’s new normal, but in this atmosphere. They’re used to a nurse being down the hall. Really boosting them up as they walk out the door goes a long way!”
And this boost is also felt by the staff, especially during difficult times.
“In both of our areas, we see a lot of really tough situations and getting to celebrate with families helps us come back to work the next day,” said Kat. “These celebrations remind us of the ‘why’ of our showing up.”