We boast an incredible occupational therapy (OT) team at Ranken Jordan, and I want to shine a light on one of our newest OTs, Madelyn Hubbs. Madelyn is inspiring our patients and staff as she demonstrates how she turned her disability into a powerful asset. Born with only one arm, Madelyn learned early how to adapt and advocate for herself. Now at 25 years old, she’s a passionate advocate for disability positivity and an inspiration to our patients and their families. People like Madelyn and their impact on our patients and their families are part of what makes Ranken Jordan unique, so I wanted to share her story.

We often share stories about what we do with patients while they’re at Ranken Jordan, but one of the most important parts of our job is actually getting patients home. However, there can be barriers to discharge and the biggest issue we’re facing right now is a lack of private duty nursing (PDN). Because of a nationwide shortage of PDN, there are typically 10-15 (17-25%) patients hospitalized at Ranken Jordan over the course of a year who would likely succeed at home if the family had access to sufficient PDN coverage, which is needed to safely care for their medically complex child.

As the CEO of Ranken Jordan, I lead all inpatient and outpatient operations and strategy, ultimately working to achieve our vision of a world where every child with complex medical needs lives their best life. A key priority of our strategic plan is advancing and sharing our unique care model, Care Beyond the Bedside. As part of that goal, we recently announced our new research department, created to focus on conducting and publishing scientific research to illustrate the model’s benefits. Another part of the plan is a newly created role at Ranken Jordan: Chief Health Transformation Officer. Our longtime Chief Medical Officer, Nick Holekamp, MD, has been appointed to this position, in which he will lead our team in bringing systemic change to the care of children with complex medical needs.

We’ve kicked off a new era at Ranken Jordan, creating a new department focused on scientific research and innovation with the goal to advance care for medically complex children. As part of our commitment to research, we published a review paper in the peer-reviewed journal, Children, in which we outline the negative effects of prolonged hospitalization for children with complex medical needs and how our unique care philosophy, Care Beyond the Bedside, is specifically designed to diminish those effects.

Since opening in 1941, Ranken Jordan has been committed to caring for children with complex medical needs. At the end of 2024, we made a major step in advancing that mission beyond the walls of Ranken Jordan: we created an official research department and hired a full-time research director. The goal of our research department is to show what we at Ranken Jordan already know to be true–getting kids out of their hospital rooms and using the power of play leads to better health outcomes.

At Ranken Jordan, we strive to ensure our patients don’t miss out on rites of passage in childhood. Whether it’s swimming, trying a new sport, or telling Santa what they want for Christmas, we believe kids should be kids whether they’re in the hospital or not. That’s why we tried something new this year: a summer camp called Adventure ReimaginED. To the best of our knowledge, our camp is the only in-hospital camp in our region that invites children with complex medical issues and their siblings.

In 2011, St. Louis golf pro Kevin Corn was reading PGA Magazine and came across a Dallas junior golf program designed for kids with complex medical issues. As a St. Louis resident proud of the pediatric care our city is known for, he thought, “We should do that here but put it on steroids.” That is how Kevin started the junior golf program here at Ranken Jordan.

You may not think of art when you hear the word hospital, but our art room is one of the most popular places at Ranken Jordan. And like many other activities and programs we offer at Ranken Jordan, art is more than just art to us–it’s a powerful tool that helps our kids heal.

You may not think of art when you hear the word hospital, but our art room is one of the most popular places at Ranken Jordan. And like many other activities and programs we offer at Ranken Jordan, art is more than just art to us–it’s a powerful tool that helps our kids heal.

You may not think of art when you hear the word hospital, but our art room is one of the most popular places at Ranken Jordan. And like many other activities and programs we offer at Ranken Jordan, art is more than just art to us–it’s a powerful tool that helps our kids heal.

After a long and snowy winter here in St. Louis, we are finally getting to spend more time outside and enjoy the early signs of spring. Getting outside is not only a mood booster for us at Ranken Jordan, it’s a part of our care for kids and it’s something we encourage all health professionals (as well as parents and caregivers) to consider as part of pediatric health.