 |
|
|
 |
Fernanda Medeiros with patient Ahmed Algahtani from Kuwait |
When Veronica Ortiz left her home in Mexico City to come to Children's Hospital Boston with her critically ill daughter who needed esophageal surgery, she spoke limited English and had trouble understanding the doctors. She had no idea how to get around in a strange city, was unfamiliar with American customs and didn't know if she'd be staying for a few days or months. This is a common predicament for many of our international patient families. Luckily, Children's International Center (IC) is ready to make their transitions to life in the United States—and the hospital—as smooth as possible.
"We're the port of entry for patients coming here from other countries," says Fernanda Medeiros, manager of the IC. "And these families come with many needs. The majority of them have come to a country they don't know anything about and it's difficult for them to navigate this medical maze of a hospital. So we become their family while they're here." Sometimes, patients arrive at the IC without having made any medical appointments, but most get in touch with the IC through their embassy, word of mouth recommendations or Internet searches.
All 10 members of the IC team were born abroad and can speak one or more of the following languages: Arabic, French, Albanian, Creole, Greek, Italian, German, Spanish and Portuguese, which makes it easier for them to provide personalized help to families. The IC employees take on the responsibility for coordinating international patients' care, getting medical records translated, arranging for interpreters, providing financial consulting, helping with travel arrangements, tutoring and accommodations—often for the patient's entire family. "Fernanda has helped the IC to expand and work with other hospital departments, which improves decision-
making and communication," says Pamela Frank, director of International Health Services, who oversees the IC.
Once families arrive at Children's, they're usually on an extremely tight schedule because they have temporary visas and huge living expenses while they're here. So the biggest challenge for the IC is squeezing all of their assistance into small time frames. "I wish I had enough staff to help each family with all aspects of their stay, but it's impossible because we have to focus on our priority: the patient," says Medeiros. Often, families who've already been helped by an IC employee turn around and offer to share what they've learned with other international families. Most families visit the IC on a daily basis, using it as a home base and a place to connect with other families.
Even though IC employees are so busy, they do their best to solve a family's every problem. Just recently, Medeiros called the Department of Motor Vehicles to help an upset 13-year-old Middle Eastern patient and her father. The DMV denied their request for a disability placard because the daughter refused to remove her hijab (headscarf) for her photo ID. "Her illness is causing her hair to fall out," says Medeiros. "So I called the DMV and explained that it was a unique situation, both culturally and medically and we were able to work it out."
The IC often caters to the many cultural needs and religions of their patients by working with the Department of Pastoral Care and celebrating holidays from their native countries. Birthday celebrations, free family passes to the Museum of Science and shopping tips are other niceties the IC employees regularly offer to make families' stays here a bit easier.
Veronica Ortiz is one of many parents who appreciate all that the IC does. She's now made four trips to Children's for both of her children's surgeries and is learning more English with each visit. During her latest stay, the IC helped her get funding for her 18-month-old son to have a second surgery and set them up at the hospital's patient housing facility. "The best part of the IC, for me, is being able to talk to someone in my language and ask questions and get explanations," says Ortiz. "They help with everything from simple questions to things that are more difficult to understand. They even helped me get all of the medical records once we were home in Mexico City."
|
|
