Nurses and child life staff from ECU Health went to Pactolus Global School on Tuesday, March 19, to host the Teddy Bear Hospital event as part of Pitt County Health Sciences Academy. This fun, interactive event aims to familiarize elementary-aged children with health care workers in a friendly environment.
Elementary school students donned scrubs and personal protective equipment (PPE) to bring their favorite stuffed animals to the Teddy Bear Hospital. Students assumed the role of parents responsible for the toy’s care, starting with checking their stuffed animal into the waiting room to be triaged. ECU Health nurses then examined the stuffed animals and gave them a diagnosis. Nursing staff provided a treatment plan to help the stuffed animal get better. Through this interactive process, ECU Health nurses and child life team members engaged with the children, fostering valuable interaction and promoting health during workshop sessions.
According to Reed Potts, coordinator of Pitt County Health Sciences Academy, the event serves a number of purposes including to increase the awareness of health care, reduce anxiety around doctor’s visits and introduce students to different health care careers.
“They’re having an absolute blast,” said Potts. “You never know, we may have a couple of nurses and doctors in here who wind up taking care of us one day.”
Nancy Turner, workforce development consultant, ECU Health, said students have really been engaged with the event and enjoyed the process.
“Students are learning all about health care process as if they are at a doctor’s office or even a hospital,” said Turner. “The students have been great. We’re talking to them after their rotations, and they’re excited to share how our nurses helped their stuffed animals ‘get better’ whether it be with a cast or a band-aid.”
While this may be the first exposure to health care careers for some students, it will not be the last. ECU Health team members, in partnership with Health Sciences Academy, participate in a number of career exploratory events with middle school and high school students including job shadowing, career fairs and “Chat with a Doc.”
“The most important thing is we are able to reach out to students of all ages,” said Turner. “We expose students to health care careers starting in elementary school and continue in middle school and high school letting them know that there a lot of different careers in health care. We’re letting students know there is a health care role for anybody and everybody.”
The Pitt County Health Sciences Academy is a partnership between ECU Health, Pitt County Schools, Pitt Community College, East Carolina University, the Brody School of Medicine, Colleges of Allied Health Sciences, Engineering and Nursing at East Carolina University, School of Dental Medicine at East Carolina University, the Eastern Area Health Education Center and the Greenville-Pitt County Chamber of Commerce.
Each Halloween, patients, families and team members at Maynard Children’s Hospital at ECU Health Medical Center get a chance to break away and enjoy the holiday.
Parade floats from team members and community groups flowed by the Children’s Hospital on Halloween afternoon, giving the children a chance to see some of their favorite characters, like Barbie and Ken, Minions, and floats from Toy Story, Trolls and Encanto. Even the Mystery Machine, a Jeep full of sharks and a pirate ship appeared – all to help make the day a little brighter for the youngest patients at ECU Health Medical Center.
Amanda Jones, a child life specialist at Maynard Children’s Hospital, said there is always a lot of planning that goes into the event, but it’s worth it each year to give the children something to look forward to during the holiday.
“This is a really fun event where they can still celebrate Halloween even while they’re here at the hospital,” Jones said. “It allows kids to be kinds while they’re in the hospital. It’s something that they would normally be doing if they weren’t in the hospital so it kind of brings a little bit of that holiday spirit to the event here.”
For parents, it can also bring a source of comfort. Angela Blanton’s 8-year-old son, Chance, is a patient at the Maynard Children’s Hospital and has a rare condition called Walker-Warburg Syndrome. Blanton said Chance could not be outside for the event, but she still wanted to celebrate Halloween – her son’s favorite holiday – while at the hospital.
She shared photos of past Halloween costume contests he had won and reflected on what this event meant for her. She wore an inflatable chicken costume, worn earlier this month at a Halloween party with her son dressed as Colonel Sanders.
“He would love to be down here, but he can’t be. So I think it’s amazing for the all the children that can be here,” Blanton said. “Seeing them light up, and even me, in this silly costume. Some of the kids wanted to take a picture with me, and I thought that was awesome. To see the smiles from the kids and parents and know how important it is for everyone. Not just the children, but the moms who have been there by the bedside.”
She shared that these events mean a great deal to the patients and families looking for a piece of normalcy in a challenging time.
Patients across the hospital receive goodie bags with art supplies and toys after the event, whether or not they could come. Jones said the event is important for team members
“This is a great event for team members that participate in the parade and for those that come out and watch it,” Jones said. “It’s enjoyable to be able to step away from the bedside and spend time with patients on events like this. I think it’s really uplifting for everyone.”
As the fall season begins and young students head back to school, safety is top of mind for the Injury Prevention and School Health programs at ECU Health Medical Center.
Laurie Reed, nurse manager for the School Health Program, said starting the school year out on the right foot begins with staying healthy. Reed said it is important for parents to make sure children have an annual physical exam with a primary care provider to make sure they are healthy and have what they need to be successful in the classroom.
For students entering public schools for the first time, a health assessment is required by a physician within 12 months of starting school. Reed said providers need to fill out a form and have it submitted to the school.
“If their child has had a physical in the last year, it may just be a matter of taking that form to the provider’s office to have them complete it,” Reed said. “If they haven’t had that physical in the last year, it’s really important that they go ahead and reach out to their child’s doctor to get that appointment scheduled.”
Additionally, she noted the importance of students being up-to-date on their vaccines to help keep them in school. Reed said there are specific vaccines and boosters for children as they reach kindergarten, 7th grade and 12th grade, all of which should be part of their annual physicals.
Reed said it’s important to understand that these vaccines and boosters are all part of keeping young students healthy and in the classroom.
“These are actually diseases that are still out there and that children actually could get if they don’t receive vaccines,” Reed said. “Of course, in a school environment where children are in close conditions, it’s a public health concern if we would have a student that would come down with one of these illnesses. If other students are not vaccinated, then, of course, then it could it could spread within a school setting. Generally, just for their overall good health, it’s just very important that students are receiving their vaccines on a routine basis.”
Reed encouraged families to contact their local school nurse or the Maynard Children’s Hospital for more information.
School bus safety
Another important aspect of back to school safety focuses on our roads.
Ellen Walston, Injury Prevention Program coordinator at ECU Health Medical Center, urged motorists to use caution when driving near school buses and in school zones.
Walston said that distracted driving is a problem and to combat that challenge, some modifications have been made in school zones in the area. These updates include mounted speed boards and flashing beacons at crosswalks to alert drivers to pedestrians.
“It is really important that we emphasize distractions within school zones and any time that you’re driving,” Walston said. “Students are also distracted when they’re walking to and from school. So any education we can provide around that is important and that applies to the driver as well as a pedestrian.”
Richard Hutchinson, director of transportation for Pitt County Schools, said it’s crucial for drivers to follow the law and stop when a bus is at a pick up or drop off spot to keep children safe.
Hutchinson shared that over 3,000 stopped school buses are passed each day in North Carolina and this creates a risk for children. He asked that drivers follow the law, stop and wait for the school bus to continue.
“As soon as you see the amber lights come on, it would be good to slow down and be prepared to stop,” Hutchinson said. “If the busses come to a stop, you should come to a stop, even if that stop arm has not come out yet. That’s just going to help keep everyone safe.”
Resources
Independence Day is celebrated across the country with cookouts, family gatherings, fireworks and more. While fireworks are a fun way to celebrate, they can be dangerous if not handled by professionals and can cause serious harm including devastating burns and other injuries.
More than 3,000 children under the age of 15 are sent to the emergency room each year in the United States because of fireworks, according to Safe Kids. During July 4 celebrations, it is important to remain mindful of safety and injury prevention while enjoying festivities, particularly those involving fireworks.
Ellen Walston, Injury Prevention Program coordinator at ECU Health Medical Center, said firework injuries are far too common, including those that can be sustained from sparklers.
“We have an extended holiday weekend, but we want to send the important message to let the professionals handle the firework displays,” Walston said. “Some children really enjoy using sparklers but we just ask that you use extra caution because the tips of those sparklers can exceed 1,200 degrees and cause a third degree burn.”
She said supervision of children is key when using sparklers and to make sure they are fully distinguished after use by pouring water over the sparkler, as they can still run around 450 degrees after they are finished burning. Walston said glowsticks are a safe alternative option.
From 2018-22, Walston said there were 11 admissions to ECU Health Medical Center for firework-related injuries. Typically, she said, the injuries are to hands and fingers and the most common age group is 20-29.
“Any time that you are in a situation where there are fireworks involved, we ask that you provide very close supervision to any children, don’t let them near the fireworks,” Walston said. “We want everyone to have fun with their families but it’s so important to do so safely and that starts with supervision.”
Leaving a child, senior or pet behind in a car can pose serious danger, even if it’s just for a few minutes.
That was the message of the hot car safety event hosted by Ellen Walston, Injury Prevention Program coordinator at ECU Health Medical Center, along with the Martin-Pitt Partnership for Children, Pitt County Sheriff’s Office, Safe Kids North Carolina and Greenville Fire Rescue.
Walston said it’s dangerous for anyone to be left alone in a vehicle because of how quickly they can heat up, especially for children.
On June 29, Walston and community partners shared the information in the parking lot of Kohl’s in Greenville. During a somewhat overcast afternoon with temperatures around 90 degrees, it took about 15 minutes for the display car on hand to reach 123 degrees inside.
“Our campaign is never leave your child alone, not even for one minute,” Walston said. “That means when you think you can just run in and do a quick errand in the store or any situation, we don’t ever want a child to be left alone in a car, not even for a minute. That also includes our senior adults and pets.”
Walston said leaving the windows cracked for a child, pet or senior with the engine off is not enough ventilation to be safe, and even leaving them in the car with the air conditioning on can pose dangers.
During the event, Walston and team demonstrated how the heat inside vehicles can literally cook s’mores by roasting them on the dashboard. She said there have already been eight deaths in the United States this year from children being left alone in cars. While there have not been any in North Carolina this year, the state had four of the 33 national deaths last year.
“One death is too many, that’s why we’re out here today educating the community,” Walston said. “The car we have out here today actually has a feature that has a reminder to check the backseat when you turn off the engine. It’s important to put something tangible in your backseat that you need to get out when you leave the car – your pocketbook, your cell phone, a briefcase, your lunch bag – just to remind you to always check the backseat.”
Walston said that while many parents think this could never happen to them, it can be as easy as breaking your routine to make a parent forget a child is still in the car. More than 50 percent of child deaths from hot cars are from children that have been forgotten in vehicles, and only 17 percent have been intentionally left.
Walston earns North Carolina Coordinator of the Year
Allan Buchanan, Safe Kids North Carolina director, was on hand during the event to recognize Walston as Safe Kids North Carolina Coordinator of the Year.
Buchanan said Walston is a great role model for other Safe Kids Coordinators and is a great leader for the program across the state.
“She does a wonderful job here in Pitt County, getting the message out on injury prevention,” Buchanan said. “In North Carolina, we actually have 46 coalitions across the state. Ellen does a fabulous job here in Pitt County for injury prevention program across a number of different risk areas. She’s just a vital access to the community and creating risk reduction in this area. We’re very fortunate to have Ellen as a coordinator.”
Last year, Safe Kids Pitt County was recognized as the North Carolina Coalition of the Year. Walston said she’s just happy to share the recognition with her many community partners across Pitt County and eastern North Carolina.
She said the nomination was anonymous but she believes the events her team hosts, the collaboration with community partners and the work that Safe Kids Pitt County does with other Safe Kids coalitions across the state helped earn the award.
“I do think when they see these type of events and the work that we do in Pitt County and beyond that, they pay attention and we really try to partner with other Safe Kids coalitions,” Walston said. “So I’m all about sharing resources and working together, that’s how you make it happen. We’re really fortunate to have such great partners.”
The Maynard Children’s Hospital at ECU Health Medical Center is celebrating its 10th year of offering high-quality, compassionate care in a soothing environment for patients and families in eastern North Carolina.
Dr. Matthew Ledoux, pediatrician in chief at Maynard Children’s Hospital, said the children’s hospital has immensely benefited the youngest patients in the East and made for more seamless care.
“The children’s hospital itself has given us the opportunity to grow services – we started an ECMO program, we’ve started and developed a dedicated Children’s Transport Team that flies all over the region and picks up kids and brings them back here,” Dr. Ledoux said. “The fact that we have all the subspecialty care, we have all the surgical care and generalized pediatric care here makes all the difference. It’s really a shining light in the East.”
Over the past 10 years, countless improvements have been made that have positively impacted the lives of many children and their families in eastern North Carolina. Other key expansions included the Pediatric Day Medical Unit, Pediatric Radiology Unit, and Pediatric Pharmacy among several other additions.
Kim Crickmore, PhD, RN, senior vice president for Women’s and Children’s Hospital and Community Health Programs, said the Maynard Children’s Hospital is an integral part of health care in eastern North Carolina today. Over the last 10 years, the children’s hospital has delivered more than 37,000 babies, with more 61,000 inpatient admissions, 216,000 emergency cases, 223,000 outpatient cases and an additional 700,000 pediatric outpatient visits through the ECU pediatric outpatient center.
“When we consider the impact to the region over the last 10 years, it’s really unbelievable,” Crickmore said. “It means so much to us here at the hospital that we’ve been able to provide care, primarily under one roof and unite all the services and to be the destination in eastern North Carolina for children who are sick or injured and need the specialty care we provide.”
Crickmore and Dr. Ledoux both said one of the services they are most proud of is the Children’s Transport team. The team consists of intensive-care trained nurses and respiratory therapists skilled in providing the specialty care many children need from the onset of transport to arrival at Maynard Children’s Hospital. Crickmore said it has been an intentional focus to build the program over the last five years and the program has seen many successes.
The Space
The amenities offered in the under-the-sea-themed Maynard Children’s Hospital are designed with patients and families in mind. Soothing young patients in a health care setting is no small task, but the children’s hospital is uniquely equipped to handle the challenge.
Dr. Ledoux said the community has stepped up time and again to provide resources and make donations that make a real difference for patients and families.
When thinking about his favorite area of the Maynard Children’s Hospital, Dr. Ledoux came back to the light tower, which can be seen when driving past the hospital. He said it’s a reminder of why he, and every children’s hospital team member, shows up to work every morning – to take care of the youngest patients in eastern North Carolina. He said he’s often asked what the colors on the light tower mean when people drive by at night.
“The reason is, we’re generally celebrating a child, we’re celebrating the end of a treatment, they’ve finished chemotherapy, or maybe they’ve been in the NICU for two or three months and they’re getting to go home,” Dr. Ledoux said. “We really try to make sure that the families and children get to pick the color and the time, but any time you see the color change anything different from our usual light blue, we’re celebrating a child and a family so it’s pretty exciting.”
Into the Future
Crickmore and Dr. Ledoux both said the next 10 years are something they’re looking forward to with the Maynard Children’s Hospital. They hope to continue expanding services and looking more to the region to bring specialty care closer to home for patients and families.
Dr. Ledoux said he and other physicians in the system have enjoyed their time spent in the region and the ability to help patients and bring key services closer to home for patients makes it special.
“I think the biggest thing is the distance that people have to travel,” Dr. Ledoux said. “We know that it’s a very underserved population and there’s a lot of poverty. People have challenges paying for gas or even having a car. The closer we can be to them to provide those services, the better.”
Another upcoming project that will impact pediatric patients in the East is the behavioral health hospital, slated to open in Greenville in 2025. ECU Health is partnering with Acadia Healthcare to build the state-of-the-art facility that will feature 24 inpatient beds specifically for children and adolescents with mental health needs. These beds will be the first of their kind in ECU Health’s 29-county service area and the only child and adolescent beds within 75 miles of Greenville, North Carolina.
Join us in celebrating the Maynard Children’s Hospital and all of its team members for the last 10 years of service to eastern North Carolina.
For more than 25 years, the Pediatric Asthma Program at the Maynard Children’s Hospital at ECU Health Medical Center has worked to help patients and families living with asthma lead healthy lives.
Jeanine Sharpe, social work care manager for the Pediatric Asthma Program, said the goal of the program has always been to decrease emergency department visits, reduce school absences due to asthma, provide education and improve quality of life for patients and families.
“Currently, there are about 5.1 million children under the age of 18 that have asthma in the U.S. and it’s the leading chronic disease for children,” Sharpe said. “Just for our service area last year, we had 1,687 pediatric asthma patient referrals. It’s the number one reason for school absences and the number two reason for hospital admissions for children. But we know that asthma is a controllable disease. What we find is that a lot of times the missing piece is just education.”
Sharpe said the program has touched many families over the years, whether it’s just one interaction or years of working on a family’s case. One family that has seen the impact of the program recently is the Carr family.
Dalton Carr III was diagnosed with asthma three years ago and struggled with wheezing, coughing and attacks in the years since.
Dalton III’s mother, Shanika said she was scared when her son was first diagnosed and she wasn’t sure how to handle certain situations. This past December, Dalton had an incident and was seen in the emergency department for his asthma.
“That’s when I met Ms. Sharpe,” Shanika said. “I was confused at the time, but ever since I met Ms. Sharpe, it’s been easier to learn things. I was confused with the things different doctors were telling me and I really didn’t understand how serious it was.”
Dalton III’s father, Dalton Jr., said it has been a great experience working with Sharpe and the Pediatric Asthma Program team.
He said the education and support offered have helped their son be confident and join in the everyday activities of other children his age. While he used to struggle, today he does not wheeze, cough or have flare ups from his asthma. Dalton Jr. credited the work with the Pediatric Asthma Program for this turnaround.
“She got us in a good routine for him. Ever since we’ve gotten Dalton on a consistent routine, he hasn’t had any problems,” Dalton Jr. said. “It’s even to the point where he can tell us when he needs his pump. He might say, ‘Mom or dad, I need my pump’ or ‘I’m good.’ He plays football and he’s running and tackling and it’s a lot but with Ms. Sharpe being in our lives these last few months, it’s just helped a lot.”
Dalton Jr. encouraged families to reach out for help and to learn what might work best for their child’s asthma.
Malorie Whitaker, respiratory care manager at ECU Health Medical Center, said the program is designed to help patients from one to 18 years of age feel more comfortable while they manage their asthma and participate in normal childhood activities.
She also said the program is set up to meet children where they are and eliminate barriers to care.
“Sometimes they’ll come into our office to do different testing or do some education, but usually we meet them,” Whitaker said. “So we’ll get into the homes, we’ll go into the schools, into the clinic, wherever they are. Some of these kids that we see don’t have transportation or transportation is difficult for them, so that’s why we like to go into the school or into the homes to help them.”
To learn more, or to speak with someone close to you, visit the Pediatric Asthma page or call one of the ECU Health locations offering pediatric asthma services.
- ECU Health Bertie Hospital: 252-833-2861
- ECU Health Chowan Hospital: 252-833-2861
- ECU Health Edgecombe Hospital: 252-641-7382
- ECU Health Medical Center: 252-847-6835
- ECU Health Roanoke-Chowan Hospital: 252-209-3117
By ECU News Services and ECU Health News
Getting through medical school can be tough – long hours, books and tests, and more books. However, in between classes and all-nighters, two students from the Brody School of Medicine have established a flourishing volunteer program to bring doula-like services to a region of North Carolina starved for birthing support.
The birthing companion program was started in October 2022 by Uma Gaddamanugu and Shantell McLaggan, both second-year Brody students and Schweitzer fellows. The Albert Schweitzer Fellowship supports graduate health professionals drawn from across the state who learn and work to address unmet health care needs in North Carolina.
Gaddamanugu’s and McLaggan’s fellowship project is focused on improving birth experiences of high-risk pregnant mothers in eastern North Carolina through the free birth support program to add an extra layer of support for women in the birthing process.
Patient populations in rural parts of eastern North Carolina simply need more help, Winston-Salem native Gaddamanugu said, from prenatal care through the laboring process, and certified doulas are an expensive out-of-pocket resource for which most North Carolinians must pay out of pocket because health insurance often doesn’t cover the cost.
“We are the only hospital with a high-risk labor and delivery unit for half the state. You think about how far some of these people have to travel, which makes it way harder for their support people to come with them,” Gaddamanugu said.
In February 2022, the North Carolina Institute of Medicine reported that the state’s maternal mortality rate was 27.6 per 100,000 births, which is slightly lower than the national average, but more than double the previous year’s rate of 12.1 per 100,000 births.
A 2021 study by the North Carolina Maternal Mortality Review Committee reported that 60 women died from pregnancy related causes from 2014-2016. Of those, nearly 60% were from minority racial categories and more than one in three were from rural areas. What’s more troubling – the study determined that 70% of maternal deaths could have been prevented by changing “patient, family, provider, facility, system and/or community factors.”
The program
At first, the program had 18 volunteers, but since its inception in October 2022 the ranks of birthing support volunteers have doubled to 37. At the beginning of February, the volunteers had assisted with more than 70 births, which is “way past our goal that we had initially set,” Gaddamanugu said.
Volunteers from the program come from a wide range of backgrounds, though most are medical or nursing students. Some are undergraduate students from main campus who want to be part of a program that serves the community. For now, the program is staffed almost completely by ECU students, though Gaddamanugu and McLaggan will soon hand the program’s day-to-day management off to first-year medical students who aim to open the program up to the public.
“Our program is very much modeled off a program at UNC. They’ve been doing that for about 20 years,” Gaddamanugu said. “A Wake Forest medical student started a similar volunteer doula program two years ago through the Schwitzer Fellowship. It’s just neat to see that it was possible with the structure of the organization to bring that program here, because there’s a whole different need in eastern North Carolina.”
Gaddamanugu stressed that the volunteers in the program, who support the labor and delivery services at ECU Health, aren’t certified doulas but rather are there to help during the immediate labor process. For one delivery, that might be a non-clinical, non-medical role – a friendly face and a hand to hold – and in other cases it might be running through the hospital to find a phone charging cable so a mother can stay in contact with her other children at home.
Leslie Coggins, a charge nurse on the labor and delivery unit at ECU Health Medical Center in Greenville, said the volunteer program has been a great success, both for the mothers in the delivery process as well as for students on track to become the next generation of health care providers.
“We’ve always had a great relationship with our residents, but now we have almost a pipeline — doctors, potential doctors, nurses, someone interested in birth and supporting birth in its natural function,” Coggins said. “To share that experience with up-and-coming providers and nurses who will be taking our places someday is huge.”
While the volunteer program is currently staffed by students, the student organizers and Coggins as the nurse manager of the labor and delivery unit hope to soon include members of the public. Those interested in volunteering should contact the program by emailing [email protected].
Training medical professionals
The ECU version of a volunteer birth companion program is rooted in experiences both medical students had working as volunteers in hospitals in doula-like roles. Gaddamanugu volunteered during her time as an undergraduate at UNC; McLaggan, who is from Thomasville, spent several years after her undergraduate education working at the Cherokee Indian Hospital in western North Carolina and helped establish a volunteer doula program there.
Both students are interested in pursuing a career in obstetrics.
McLaggan’s mother told her from an early age that she was smart enough to be a doctor. After researching the requirements and being captivated by the science of medicine, she fell in love with the idea.
“I feel like I have the mental, emotional and the physical capacity to do something as strenuous as being a doctor,” McLaggan said. “Because I have those qualities, I feel like it’s my obligation to become a doctor and serve people to the maximum of my abilities.”
Medicine was also a calling for Gaddamanugu, who said that the challenge is humbling but she sees a future where she can make a difference by “maternal and child health disparities in our community” which fit the impact that she hopes to make in the world.
She said that the experiences at the bedside have colored the conversations that she has with her medical school peers about the experience of medicine from the patient’s perspective.
“We know birth is hard, but here is what it really can look like,” Gaddamanugu said. “The U.S. has an awful maternal mortality crisis, and we can hear those numbers all day long in school, but the numbers don’t mean anything until you see it in person, and you realize some of these patients are extremely sick.”
For Dr. Kerianne Crockett, ECU Health OB/GYN and Brody clinical assistant professor, the program has clear benefits for the patients she serves. She has heard from patients who appreciated having another source of support during their delivery.
“Delivering a baby is one of the most exhausting, exhilarating, sometimes scary experiences of a patient’s life,” Crockett said. “There is good evidence that patients with a continuous support person present throughout labor — whether that person is a family member, a spouse or a doula — have better birth outcomes, including lower rates of cesarean delivery. I am so proud that our bright, compassionate, empathetic medical students are now able to be that continuous support person for all kinds of patients, including those who otherwise would not have had anyone besides the medical team there for their delivery.”
Student involvement in health care delivery, and the unique perspectives students offer patients, is a hallmark of a large academic health system like ECU Health. As students learn from the clinical experience of providers at ECU Health, they are empowered to innovate and bring ideas to the table that lead to better patient experiences and brighter outcomes.
“As an academic health system, our medical students help to enrich the patient experience with their energy and ideas,” said Angela Still, senior administrator of women’s services at ECU Health Medical Center. “The birthing support volunteer initiative is a great example of how Brody students go beyond the walls of the classroom and make a direct impact on the patients we’re proud to serve.”
Serving eastern North Carolina
Sometimes the most important support that a birthing companion can provide comes from skills that can’t be taught in a formal doula class.
McLaggan remembers one time she volunteered with a woman who had a number of kids already — the most recent born by C-section. The medical staff recommended another C-section, which the woman was reluctant to agree to due to the complications she had with the previous birth. The challenge that McLaggan was able to help resolve wasn’t convincing the woman to have a C-section, but rather just communicating with her at all. The woman was Haitian and spoke Haitian Creole and little English.
“I happened to speak French, which is very similar to Haitian Creole, so she was able to communicate to me, where she was coming from and what her needs were,” McLaggan remembered. “I was able to bridge that gap and she ended up delivering naturally. I felt so honored and privileged to have been in the room.”
Another of the volunteers in the program has similar experiences with language gaps being a hindrance to quality health care. An undergraduate student recounted to Gaddamanugu how, growing up in eastern North Carolina, she was always saddled with translating for her mother and siblings during medical appointments — a task that shouldn’t really be shouldered by a young person. The student volunteer said, though tears, that she was so grateful to be able to translate for delivering mothers because she knew first-hand the constricting fear and anxiety of being language-locked in a stressful medical situation.
While the language capabilities that some students bring to the hospital bedside are important, Coggins said, patient populations in eastern North Carolina are getting sicker, which often requires the health care team members to devote their attention to the physiological status of the patient.
“We try to promote natural delivery as much as we can,” Coggins said, but sometimes the medical conditions of the mother and baby require doctors and nurses to focus on the immediate illness. “One-on-one support is essential with our patients. A lot of times our sick population are not from around here and don’t have the support system in place, so this is an added benefit so our nurses can focus on what is medically happening and where we need intervene.”
Gaddamaugu is awed at the privilege of being present at a birth.
“I’ve cried every single time; it’s one or two single tears, but they were C-section babies and you could sense the relief in the OR the moment the baby comes out safe and healthy,” Gaddamaugu said.
McLaggan has known that being in the room during the birthing process is what she has wanted to do since before kindergarten. She’s seen a handful of births as a volunteer and continues to be amazed by each one.
“Words don’t describe how amazing childbirth really is. I get so overwhelmed with emotion when I see 37 to 40 weeks of work and love going into this child that is coming into the world,” McLaggan said.
Resources
Students at A.G. Cox Middle School in Winterville learned about the dangers of vaping tobacco or other substances and drug use during an event hosted at the school on Feb. 28.
Pitt County School nurses, ECU Health team members and volunteers, and local high school students acted out two different scenarios for the A.G. Cox students, who are in grades 6-8, to show how quickly things can go wrong.
In one scenario, a student at a party takes a gummy from a friend, which turns out to be laced with drugs. The student then falls critically ill from the effects of the drugs.
In another, a student is taken to the hospital after using a vape they were told did not have tobacco in it, but instead was filled with an unknown drug.
Emerson Fipps, a senior at South Central High School in Winterville, helped act out the first scenario with another student and an ECU Health volunteer. She said she’s proud to support events where she can help other young people set themselves up to make positive decisions.
“Middle school is really where everything starts to come up,” Fipps said. “Teenagers are just trying to find themselves so they’re getting into things that they shouldn’t. They’re not really fully educated about everything these destructive decisions could affect. It’s really good for them to start hearing about it young because when they’re in these situations, they’ll already have the information.”
Tiffany Thigpen, the Region 10 tobacco prevention and control coordinator for the Pitt County Health Department, said schools across the country are seeing an increase of students vaping and using gummies and other drug-infused edibles.
The National Poison Data System reported 3,054 cases of pediatric edible cannabis consumption in 2021, a large increase from 207 cases in 2017.
Thigpen said one of the most important things parents can do to keep their children safe from tobacco and drugs is talk to them.
“Talk to your children, let them know that these things are not safe,” Thigpen said. “Let them know that it is OK to say no. Talk to them about refusal skills and ways to say no to their peers. Let them know they can talk to you about what they’re experiencing. If they do use these products, share the dangers with them and ways to stop.”
Thigpen said the county is working to get as much information as they can into the hands of students about the dangers of drugs and vaping to help stop addictions before they begin.
Laurie Reed, manager of school health services at ECU Health, said partnerships make all the difference for events like the one hosted at A.G. Cox Middle School.
“Our school board and our school health advisory committee are very supportive of programs like this in our school system,” Reed said. “We just hope we’ll be able to offer more of them. It’s a great collaborative effort and it takes a lot of effort on the part of our school nurses, Injury Prevention, our health department, but it’s a great collaborative opportunity for our community.”
The holiday season brings so much joy, especially for young children and their families that get to see them light up as they unwrap presents.
While picking out toys that young ones will love, it is also important to consider the safety of the toy, Ellen Walston, Injury Prevention Program coordinator at ECU Health Medical Center, said.
In 2021, there were more than 152,000 toy-related, emergency department-treated injuries to children under the age of 15, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
“I think the thing is, because of COVID and supply chain issues, a lot of parents have a lot of pressure on that perfect gift,” Walston said. “But you don’t need to sacrifice safety.”
Walston noted toys with many pieces and stuffed animals with poorly sewn features as choking hazards for small children. A good test, she said, would be to use a toilet tissue roll to see what kinds of items might be a choking hazard for a child. If it could get stuck in a toilet tissue roll, it could be ingested and become a choking hazard.
She said often older children and younger children in the same home can play with different toys that may be safer for the older child than the younger child. It is important to remind older children to put away toys when they are done using them to make sure younger children cannot get hurt using that toy or ingesting pieces.
A key concern each year, though, is button batteries, Walston said. Button batteries can be found in many objects around a home, including car key fobs, thermometers, scales and some remotes. These can also be found in books that play music and many singing cards. Walston said if a child gets to these batteries, it can be very dangerous — not only as a choking hazard, but also the possibility for chemical burns from the battery.
Last, Walston reminded anyone purchasing a bike for a child to not forget a helmet and bell or another item that makes noise.
Walston said it all comes down to making educated choices and supervising young children while they play to keep them safe and avoiding an emergency.
“Please make sure that you’re paying attention to labels,” Walston said. “If a toy says ‘not recommended for a child under three years of age,’ you have to take those warnings seriously. Also, supervision is critical and just making sure that children are safe when they’re playing.”
Keeping children safe with their toys helps ensure a happy holiday season for all.