At the other end, a doctor, nurses and counselors share updates on their patients. There is talk of bleeding and tumors, pain and deformity, end stage disease. Their patients are infants and toddlers, middle schoolers and teenagers, all with diseases, medical conditions or physical traumas expected to end their life before adulthood. Yet those heading the specialized children's program say it remains largely unknown. In a county with more than 175,000 children under age 18, Children's Hospice has only 10 kids using its medical services.
None is a cancer patient.
The staff pediatrician estimates that double the number of children could benefit from the medical care. Another 40 to 50 families take advantage of counseling and bereavement services offered through the hospice Child and Family Support program. The staff is working on extending its outreach, creating literature that outlines programs and making presentations in local medical offices. In doing so, staff members want to communicate to the medical community and families that Children's Hospice is not a death sentence. Indeed, the staff is contemplating a name change.