Page 7 - Ochsner Magazine - Fall-Winter 2014
P. 7
wing is designed to make children feel safe and welcome. Ochsner even has a specialized Children’s Emergency Department, where all equipment is designed for children and staff members have special training in pediatric emergency care.
“You can sense the difference the minute you walk off the elevator at Ochsner Hospital for Children,” says Joan Griffith, MD, System Chairwoman, Department of Pediatrics. “Immediately, you’re greeted with colorful artwork donated by a local artist and a ceiling that looks like the night sky. Our rooms accommodate family members who want to spend the night with their child. And we have a playroom staffed by child-life specialists. But what really stands out at Ochsner is the care we give our patients.”
Cecilia agrees. “They take care of you and make you feel safe,” she says.
Cecilia’s medical obstacles began only weeks after birth, when her mother, Angelle Shaffette, grew concerned about her new- born’s fussy behavior. Though friends assured her it was probably colic, Angelle sensed something more serious was wrong. She took Cecilia to pediatrician Mary Lou Seymour, MD, and asked her to take another look.
“I discovered that she had an enlarged liver due to an abnormality in the bile ducts,” Dr. Seymour recalls. “She needed immediate surgery in order to survive.”
“I discovered that she
had an enlarged liver. She
needed immediate surgery
in order to survive.”
—MARY LOU SEYMOUR, MD, PEDIATRICS, OCHSNER MEDICAL CENTER – NORTH SHORE
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