Children's Hospital Palliative Care and Child Life Programs

In September 2004, The Moyer Foundation generously provided a five-year $1.25 million commitment to Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center to establish The Moyer Foundation Endowment for Excellence in Pediatric Palliative Care and to continue its support of the Child Life Program at Children's.

Children's Palliative Care Program is one of the first of its kind. An interdisciplinary team works with hospital staff and the families to address the medical, psychological, social, spiritual and logistical services for children with life-limiting illnesses. Children with potentially life-limiting conditions have needs that often fall outside mainstream treatment and available services. Medical education often focuses on curing disease, not helping patients live with a life-limiting illness. The biggest challenges, of course, are for patients and families who must confront the unimaginable and work through decisions they never expected to face. Palliative care is often provided from the time of diagnosis and continues through the course of the child's life.

“On any given day in Children’s Emergency Department, families who need extra help coping with their child’s medical procedures benefit from the expertise of a Child Life Specialist. We are deeply grateful for The Moyer Foundation’s ongoing support of this program. Thanks in part to your generosity, Child Life has become an integral component of emergency care at Children’s. Thank you for your compassion and your commitment to this program.”

Children's Child Life Program helps ease children and families' fear while undergoing life-threatening diseases or emergencies. For the past several years, The Moyer Foundation has made major contributions from funds raised at the Annual Jamie Moyer Invitational Bowling Tournaments to support the program.

Child Life specialists participate in each child's health care team by helping children cope with the stresses of their illnesses through medical play (using Child Life "dolls") and explaining treatment and procedures in language conducive to the child's age and development.

Child Life Specialists help in a variety of other ways:

• Teach coping skills to family members
• Assess responses and needs of children and their families
• Act as children's advocates
• Help children maintain contact with their friends
• Help children and their families celebrate childhood milestones
• Help children with school issues
• Help children and families with bereavement support

The Moyer Foundation is proud to support both the Palliative Care and Child Life Programs - programs and specialists that help so many children and their families during a time of profound distress.

How can you help?
Join us for the 2007 Celebrity Bowling and Billiards Tournament!