CHS Cross Continuum Pediatric Ventilator Program Under Development

Each year, hundreds of children on Long Island suffer an illness or injury that requires them to be placed on mechanical ventilation to help them breathe. Many of these children are successfully weaned from these devices while in the hospital. A number of them cannot be weaned, and require continued ventilator care after their acute hospitalization. What makes this even more tragic is the fact that before now, there is no coordinated program to provide services to these children on Long Island. For this reason, these children must often be placed in programs off Long Island, or even out of state. This places a significant burden on the parents and siblings, as well as the patient because of separation. Parents are often forced to quit their jobs due to the burdens of travel to and from the facilities providing care, and a financial burden is added to their plight as well the physical and emotional challenges.

Last year, Catholic Health Services of Long Island (CHS) received a $3.2 Million HEAL grant from the New York State Department of Health to develop a Cross-Continuum Program to provide care for these ventilator dependent children. The goal of this program is to support the child and their family in the best setting for their current situation, rather than focus on meeting their needs in one particular program. CHS is uniquely qualified to provide this cross-continuum support because of the various specialty programs it provides. St. Charles Hospital provides acute rehabilitation services to help the child transition from the acute care hospital, and prepares them and their families with the support and skills they need for extended ventilator care. The goal of care at St. Charles Hospital is to strengthen the child and prepare for discharge to home after several months of care. Catholic Home Care moves in with support in the home with their specialized pediatric services. If the child cannot be safely maintained at home, then they will be cared for in a special unit being developed at Our Lady of Consolation Nursing and Rehabilitative Care Center. This unit will also be available to provide respite care for a couple of days to a couple of weeks when families need a break from providing care in the home.

Once these programs are developed and fully implemented, there will be for the first time a coordinated program for the on-going care of ventilator dependent children on Long Island. The necessary approvals for construction and ongoing funding of the units at St. Charles Hospital and Our Lady of Consolation Nursing and Rehabilitative Care Center are in progress. Watch for updates and more information in coming months.