Summer 2008 - Arkansas Children's Hospital

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PEDIATRIC CARE2008ACH AmbassadorsBellaNeedhamIsabella “Bella”Needham, 3,Little RockTen days after Bella was born,her parents noticed she hadwhat seemed like an ongoingcase of the hiccups. Theybrought her to the ACHemergency room, and doctorsinformed them Bella wassuffering from seizures almostcontinuously. Bella was rushed to thepediatric intensive care unit (PICU),where she was stabilized and diagnosedwith bacterial meningitis e.coli, an infection of thebrain. Doctors placed two shunts in her brain to alleviatethe pressure caused by the meningitis. She spent 45 daysat ACH. Over the past few years Bella has visited ACHregularly for clinic visits and shunt revisions. Bella stillhas seizures and occasionally the seizures warrant a tripto the emergency room. Because of the meningitis, shehas a mild case of cerebral palsy. Bella is currently inpreschool, where she receives physical, speech andoccupational therapy. According to her mom, she is asweet, giving girl who loves to read and listen to music.CasonPeoplesCason Peoples, 6,BryantIn 2001, Cason was born a seeminglyhealthy child. The firsthint that Cason might havehearing problems came whilehe was still in the hospital,when he failed a routine hearingscreening. When Casonwas old enough to beginplaying with other children,his parents noticed his speech wasnot developing as it should and theydecided to bring Cason to ACH.After two appointments, the ACHaudiology clinic diagnosed him asprofoundly deaf and fitted him for his first hearing aids.On Cason’s third birthday, he returned to ACH toreceive the hearing aids. Cason received the best gift ofall that year – the gift of hearing. Cason visits ACH oncea week for speech therapy. He will have to wear hearingaids for the rest of his life, but for now, he is enjoyingbeing a healthy boy, who loves to play sports, dance andlisten to music.Nicholas Tedford, 17, CabotIn 1990, Nick had trouble breathing immediately after birthand was placed on a ventilator. After four days in the hospital,Nick was diagnosed with Group B strep, persistent fetalsyndrome and pneumonia, all potentially fatal illnesses. Thetreatment Nick so desperately needed was extracorporealmembrane oxygenation (ECMO), a heart-lung bypassmachine. Nick was the first child transported to ACH onmobile ECMO, when he was transferred on an ArmyReserve helicopter from Tulsa to Little Rock and placed onmobile ECMO during the flight. Once at ACH, Nick remainedon ECMO for eight days. Seventeen years after being on ECMO,Nick has no lasting effects of his illness. He graduated high schoolin May and will start college at University of Central Arkansas in the fall.Rebecca “Becca” Tramell, 2, HarrisonNicholasTedfordIn 2005, Becca was born at a Little Rock hospital. After herbirth, a doctor diagnosed her with Klippel-Trenaunay syndromeBecca(KTS), a rare medical condition in which blood vessels and/or Tramelllymph vessels fail to form properly. Becca was born with one footand one leg larger than the other. She also has portwine stains onher leg and on her back, which are a characterization of KTS.When Becca was 2 months old, her mother brought her toACH. They met with specialists who understand Becca’s rarecondition, who gave them advice and instructions on how toproperly manage Becca’s KTS, which she will have for the restof her life. Due to her foot and leg enlargement, doctors werenot sure Becca would ever be able to walk. Eventually, shebegan walking with a walker and now walks completely unassisted.Becca, who recently began preschool, is a very happy girl with a wonderful attitude.Samuel and Nicholas Woodhouse, 6, RogersFraternal twins Sam and Nick have both been treated at ACH.In 2006, Nick fell out of a golf cart. He was flown immediatelyto ACH, and after arriving in Little Rock, Nick was diagnosedwith an epidural hematoma, which is a build-up of blood inthe brain. He had surgery to repair the hematoma later thatevening, and was released from ACH three days later. Samwas referred to ACH by his pediatrician, after a routinecheck-up revealed some problems. Once at ACH, Samunderwent further testing and was diagnosed with Marfansyndrome, a condition that is characterized by extremeheight, disproportionate limbs, dislocation of the eyelenses and problems with the heart and other blood vessels.Samuel andUnlike Nick’s one-time ACH experience, Sam will continue toNicholasvisit ACH so doctors can monitor his condition. Nick loves Woodhousesports and wants to play football or golf when he grows up.Sam loves to sing, play with his friends and cheer on his favorite NASCAR driver.6
PEDIATRIC CAREBurying Millions in Our BackyardWhat kind of projectcosts $37 million,takes almost four yearsto complete and oncefinished no one willever see? And whywould something this“invisible” be so importantto the present andfuture work of ArkansasChildren’s Hospital to serve sick and injured children?The project in question is an extensive and necessary rebuild andupgrade of the utilities and utility support systems on the ACHcampus.In short, the entire ACH campus, which spans more than 28blocks and has buildings with a total occupied space of more than1.8 million square feet, has outgrown its current utility capacity.Gas, water and sewer lines, boilers, chillers and generators are at fullor somewhat diminished capacity with current operations, and thehospital has major plans to expand in the coming years. The$37 million utilities upgradeproject is critical to supportingcurrent operations andessential for future expansion.“This work has everythingto do with providing the bestpossible care for the childrenwe serve. The team workingon this project has done anamazing job of looking aheadand helping us be ready tomeet the utility and infrastructure needs for the future,” saysDavid Berry, ACH senior vice president and chief operatingofficer. “When this project is complete, we’ll be ready for the nextseveral phases of construction and will provide far newer and morereliable emergency power protection for our patients, families andstaff.”Rather than share all the details of this technical story in words,we thought we’d let you take a look at this very important investmentbefore it literally gets buried.While it may just look like ahuge hole in the ground,this construction is criticalto providing excellent healthcare for children. Oncecompleted, the hole willbecome a concrete box, orvault, which will be the hubfor the main electrical, heatingand air lines coming inand out of buildings on theACH campus.Once the $37 million utilitiesupgrade project on the ACHcampus is completed, thousandsof feet of pipes will have beenput in place to upgrade water,sewer and other critical lines.Detour signs, dump trucks and other heavy equipment are an everydaysight on the ACH campus as crews work to go underground to upgradeutilities then do all the work to get dirt, asphalt, sidewalks and sometimeseven landscaping, back in place.7
Page 3 and 4: FOCUS FOR THE FUTUREThe Four Corner
Page 5: Hannah Harris, 10,BentonAll StarsJa
Page 9 and 10: EDUCATIONHere He Is, Our Pride and
Page 11 and 12: HOSPITAL NEWSU.S. News Ranks Arkans
Page 13: HOSPITAL NEWSDr. Eldon Schulz celeb
Page 16 and 17: DONORSRemembering Bobby NeillThe AC
Page 18 and 19: AUXILIARY GROUPSTasty Treats Were t
Page 20 and 21: CHILDREN’S MIRACLE NETWORKA Day o
Page 22 and 23: COMMUNITY EVENTSCrowder Crew and Fr
Page 24: Arkansas Children’s Hospital Foun

Summer 2008 - Arkansas Children's Hospital

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