There's no place like home – improving pediatric cardiac care outcomes and reducing recovery time
As healthcare providers, we often ask ourselves what true success looks like for our patients. In the increasingly complex world of medicine, the answers can feel uncertain. However, when we stop and look at success through the eyes of a parent or caregiver, there is one goal that rises above all others: We want our loved ones to be healthy and return home safely as soon as possible.
This is especially true for newborns and young children with heart disease. These vulnerable patients face longer hospitalizations and higher risks, taking the journey to recovery well beyond the confines of the hospital. To achieve critical Health and Families outcomes, we must combine advanced medical care with comprehensive family support.
Heart defects are the most common type of birth defect. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a baby with a heart defect is born every 15 minutes in the United States. While expert clinical care is critical, research from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) shows that the presence of family members can significantly reduce stress, improve emotional well-being, and support long-term recovery.
This means hospitals must go beyond technical excellence to create environments where families feel supported and welcome. Small details — hot showers, valet parking, help with travel expenses — ease a huge burden on families amid uncertainty. These supports are far from trivial and together they can improve the well-being of patients and caregivers.
Partnerships with organizations like the Ronald McDonald House are especially powerful, providing families with a “home away from home” and a community of peers who understand their journey. These networks, combined with hospital support, can enhance resilience and recovery that clinical interventions alone cannot provide.
Equally important is play, joy and normalcy. Healing arts, child life specialists, and therapy dogs are not luxuries—they are an essential part of the healing process. They bring comfort and help children and families stay engaged during a difficult hospital stay.
Families entrust their children to us during the most vulnerable moments of their lives. In return, the care they receive must be of uncompromising quality. In addition to routine morbidity and mortality (M&M) reviews, the real-time discovery team should meet within 24 hours of any unexpected event. Rapid analysis and immediate process adjustments ensure improvements benefit patients and families immediately, not just in the coming weeks or months.
This proactive, data-driven model enhances trust with families and improves the standard of care across the continuum.
Providing this level of care requires more than surgical expertise but a complete team. Nurses, perfusionists, child life specialists, therapists, coordinators and countless others all play critical roles. Recruiting, training, and retaining an “all-star team” ensures that empathy, kindness, creativity, and resourcefulness are integrated into every interaction.
When each member of the team works with skill and compassion, the whole child—not just their diagnosis—is cared for.
Children with heart disease spend too much of their childhood in hospitals—sometimes for months. For a child, a month is an eternity. As providers, it is our responsibility to not only shorten this time through quality medical care, but to make each day more supportive, humane, and hopeful.
As healthcare providers, surgery, innovation and data are critical to us. But when families reflect on their hospital experiences, they're reminded of something more lasting: how they were cared for as a family.
By keeping Health and Family as our guiding stars, we can ensure that our patients heal better, our families are supported, and our communities see that the best medicine is both deeply technical and deeply human.
Photo: Natali_Mis, Getty Images
Dr. Stephen M. Langley is medical director and chief of pediatric cardiac surgery at Driscoll Children's Hospital, a premier children's health care provider in South Texas and home to the fastest-growing cardiac center in the United States. Stephen is also the Harmon and Grace Dobson Distinguished Chair in Pediatric and Congenital Heart Surgery at the hospital. With an extensive background in cardiac surgery, Stephen leads a culture of constant pursuit of perfection at Driscoll Children's Hospital, providing exceptional care for children and unwavering support for families. Under Stephen's direction, the Heart Center at Driscoll Children's Hospital has become one of North America's elite institutions for its ability to successfully handle the most challenging cases and pioneer new pathways in pediatric cardiac care. His extensive experience spans prestigious institutions, including UPMC and OHSU. Stephen is recognized for his commitment to patient safety and innovative treatment approaches.
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