After receiving treatment for a life-changing traumatic event or diagnosis in a traditional children’s hospital, where do children go before returning home? After all, their recovery journey doesn’t end once they exit those hospital doors. Next steps after intensive care can be daunting. Families are left scrambling, unsure of what options are available, and unaware of the resources that could support them. And, many hospitals and providers don’t know what happens to these kids once they leave their care.

New notebooks, cute haircuts, chatting with friends about schedules and teachers: these are some of the most exciting hallmarks of a new school year. While the back-to-school season looks different for a child with complex medical needs, it is still a vital time for growth and new beginnings.

In 2021, we launched a time-motion study to track the whereabouts and activities of our patients, an important first step in reversing the trend that a long hospital stay can put a child more at risk for developmental delay. It was the first study of its kind and our initial results were published in the peer-reviewed Child: Care, Health & Development. (Read more about the research in this blog post.) While having a published paper is an important step in our mission to encourage more research around children with complex medical conditions, the study and our findings have impacted our hospital in even more ways than we anticipated.

For the majority of us, the holiday season means time at home with family. But for our patients with complex medical conditions, most cannot go home to celebrate. That’s why at this time of year, I always think about the importance of family togetherness. Family time is critical for a child’s development and the truth is the healthcare industry can do a lot to improve family connection when a loved one is in the hospital.