With support from the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation, medical specialists from the not-for-profit Hospital will offer new options to Palm Beach County area families with children who have special medical needs.
“No matter where a family lives, it is difficult to care for a child with a serious illness, birth defect, or injury,” said M. Narendra Kini, M.D., president and chief executive officer of Miami Children’s Hospital. “Children are not miniature adults. Customizing health care for children—from diagnosis of worrisome symptoms to emotional support—is important to achieving better patient outcomes. These children often require multiple, specialty-trained doctors to help maintain quality of life.”
Families in Palm Beach County face a unique challenge, as specialty-trained doctors and hospitals equipped to care for children with special medical needs are spread throughout South Florida. Transporting a child to medical appointments and managing life during treatment far from home puts a strain on parents’ work schedules, caring for other children and, ultimately, a family’s quality of life.
The need for pediatric health care services in Palm Beach County is increasing at an accelerated pace. Indicators show that the population growth for children living in Palm Beach County, age 18 and under, will continue to surpass the rate of growth for South Florida through 2012.
“For the past several years, the Foundation has explored options to expand its impact and further advance the health care needs of children,” said Barbara Nicklaus, chairman of the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation Board of Directors. “The Miami Children’s Hospital Palm Beach County project is a great fit for our Foundation’s vision, and they have our full support.”
The Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation mission is to provide support for activities that advance and enhance the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of childhood diseases and disorders. In addition, the Foundation supports not-for-profit programs and projects aimed at children’s health, safety, and well-being.
“Our family’s passion to help children is what originally led us to create the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation,” said Jack Nicklaus, honorary chairman of the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation Board of Directors. “Our purpose is very simple: to help kids in the community where Barbara and I, and now our children and their children, have lived and worked for decades.”