I spent the past couple weeks shadowing/observing at St. Louis Children's Hospital. I'm still not at all clear on the best practices for blogging about clinical experiences, so this post will be pretty short and far from a complete recap. Let's just say that they have the largest pediatric heart and lung transplant programs in the country, and that may have been a motivation for my visit.
For what it's worth, I was really impressed. The physicians there shared a realistic understanding of what transplants can and cannot do. At the same time, they were innovative in trying new things, in the hope that transplantation can do better. Families were very engaged and involved, which is a credit to both the families and the staff--the relationship definitely needs effort on both sides. Finally, they were extremely welcoming when a medical student e-mailed from the middle of nowhere saying "I have an interest in transplantation--can I visit and learn about what you do?"
There's a mural outside the entrance to the Cardiac ICU, and the message made me smile every time I saw it.
Thank you, St. Louis. Read More...
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