Search Results

How do you choose which hospital is best equipped to care for your family?

All it takes is a drive down Interstate 4 to get a glimpse of the healthcare landscape in Central Florida. You’ll see a variety of billboards that boast the expertise of different hospitals, urgent care facilities and medical practices. Sometimes it feels like everywhere you look somebody is trying to sell you some kind of health-related product or service.

Why (and how) you should get your child involved in music

As a music therapist, I am a fierce advocate for using music to enact positive change in peoples’ lives. Music can do amazing things, and being exposed to music at an early age can have significant advantages. I believe my parents’ decision to enroll me in piano lessons as a kid was something that helped enrich my life and guide me to my current career. Music is something many of us are exposed to daily, but we don’t always engage in music with the purpose of fully understanding it. Of course, it is important to be well informed about how you are exposing your child to music throughout their development in order to ensure the most benefit.

What is music therapy and how is it used in a hospital?

I am a music therapist in a pediatric hospital and a hospital for women and babies. That is often what I say when I’m asked my occupation by friends and family. While most people generally understand what goes on in a hospital, it can be difficult to conceptualize what music therapy is and how it functions in the medical setting. Follow-up questions and comments from those unfamiliar with music therapy often include: “I didn’t know that was a thing” and “So you play music for patients in the hospital?” My answer is yes, it is a thing, but it is so much more than just playing music for hospitalized individuals.  

You can save a life: what you must know as a bystander of a traumatic injury

For those among us who have dedicated their lives to caring for others within the hospital setting, life and death are regrettably very familiar topics. Our Emergency Department personnel have the responsibility and the privilege of caring for families in their most vulnerable moments, and because we are a Level One Trauma Center our dedicated staff is expertly trained to care for patients who have suffered accidents or injuries of the most critical nature.

Fun is the name of the game! Learn about the benefits of Aquatic Therapy for your child.

One of the things I love about being an occupational therapist is using unique tools to help a child reach their full potential. One of those tools that may be a bit unexpected is a swimming pool. The properties of water offer unique benefits, are familiar to children and inherently add the unquestionable element of fun. As therapists we know that when a child is having fun, they will try harder and risk failure to reach their goals. When we treat your child, our pursuit is to build on their strengths and challenge their weaknesses while engaging them in motivating ways. Fun is the ultimate motivator! Children who have faced physical disabilities, learning difficulties or traumatic injury certainly know how fun can turn a daunting challenge into an achievable one.

What does health care reform mean for kids?

Just those three little words - health care reform - have the potential to give me a headache. That’s not because of my personal political views one way or the other, but because of the ongoing debate that continues to rage in the public forum. The sensational news headlines, the talking heads on television, the doomsday predictions: it’s simply too much. I don’t want to argue or hear others argue about it.

Your Child’s Sick: Is It Asthma or a Cold?

Your child is coughing and sniffling. Is it a cold or virus? Let’s look at the differences to help you soothe your child and know when it’s time to see a doctor.

A survivor of childhood cancer, 25 years later: Nessa’s story

Twenty-five years ago in September of 1988, Nessa’s life was forever changed by words that weren’t talked about much back then: childhood cancer. After finding bumps on Nessa’s head and swollen lymph nodes, her mom knew something wasn’t right. After a trip to the pediatrician’s office, they were told to go to Orlando Regional Medical Center (ORMC) to see Dr. Vincent Guisti, a pediatric oncologist, to find out what might be causing these symptoms. Since the visit required an overnight bag, Nessa’s mom, Carol, knew it wasn’t what she’d first suspected – it was something much more serious.

Receiving a heart-wrenching diagnosis

Your treadmill can cause serious injury in kids

I hate to add one more worry to the already long list of safety concerns for parents, but here I go. The exercise equipment found in so many homes today poses a serious threat to children. I know, right? You finally make a commitment to get fit and now there is just one more reason to let your treadmill become a clothes rack.

Too fresh for our own good (health)?

There’s nothing better than a cool glass of fresh milk after a long day. But how fresh is too fresh?