Children's Hospital at Dartmouth (CHaD)

Philanthropy Matters

Pediatric care is complex. It requires state-of-the-art medical equipment and supplies in a range of sizes to accommodate the tiniest premature babies to adolescents on the verge of adulthood; it requires multidisciplinary care teams with specialized expertise, and higher nursing and support staff ratios; it requires child-friendly facilities and special services to meet the unique psychological and emotional needs of children and provide support for their families; it requires research to advance the care of tomorrow's children. Yet the reimbursements CHaD receives fall far below the costs of care. We rely heavily on philanthropy to sustain many of these essential programs and services for the 50,000 children CHaD cares for each year.

Charitable giving takes many forms at CHaD. Direct gifts from individuals, foundations, large and small businesses, and community groups provide critically needed support. Bequests and other gifts of estate assets leave a legacy of caring. The array of community events organized by the Friends of CHaD engage hundreds of community members in raising funds for CHaD. Taken together, generous donors have given more than $17 million to CHaD since the start of the Transforming Medicine Campaign in 2002.

As we extend our deepest, heartfelt appreciation to CHaD's donors, event participants, and volunteers, this story highlights the many ways philanthropy is making a difference at CHaD. From keeping kids out of the hospital through injury prevention efforts, to cutting edge research that leads to new ways of treating brain injuries, to the day-to-day support that enables CHaD staff to provide excellent care in every encounter, we are grateful to our donors whose critically important support allows us to provide the very best care to each child, in the right place, at the right time, every time.

Philanthropy Making a Difference at CHaD

Child Advocacy and Protection Program (CAPP)

The Child Advocacy and Protection Program (CAPP) provides a crucial safety net for the region's most vulnerable and at-risk children—those who are victims of abuse and neglect. CAPP's services extend far beyond direct medical care for these children, encompassing a broad array of services that support the healing process for children and their families, address the root causes of abuse and neglect, and ensure a safe environment for the child. As a result, only 10 percent of CAPP's costs are reimbursed by health insurers. Examples of CAPP's vital—but non-revenue producing— activities include child abuse prevention work; training programs to raise awareness and recognition of child maltreatment across the region; forensic interviews and expert testimony; and case-specific collaboration with Child Protective Services, law enforcement, legal professionals, and mental health and social workers. Without generous philanthropic support, CAPP simply would not exist, and its young patients would not receive the life-changing help they desperately need.

Pediatric Oncology

Children with cancer require not only expert medical care, but also intensive support services during their diagnosis, treatment, and recovery from this frightening and often overwhelming disease. CHaD's Child Life specialists support each child's unique needs during their treatments and hospital stays, while social workers assist families with resources and counseling support as they traverse the many challenges impacting the entire family. CHaD also recently launched a survivorship clinic—a service critical to the long-term health of children treated for cancer. These essential services, are entirely dependent on charitable contributions. Philanthropy also advances care for young patients by funding a major portion of the costs related to offering clinical trials at CHaD.

Child Psychiatry

Over the past two years, philanthropic funding of CHaD's child psychiatry program has made possible significant and far-reaching programmatic growth in the care of children with behavioral and mental heath disorders. This has included the creation of a comprehensive, web-based reference library of child, adolescent, and family behavioral health resources; a doubling of the size of the Child Psychiatry section through the recruitment of additional staff, thus eliminating the waiting list and ensuring immediate access to psychiatric services; development of a new Autism Spectrum Disorders Clinic; the launch of evidence-based group therapies for children with anger management, anxiety, and social skills difficulties; the piloting of tele-psychiatry to deliver services to distant, underserved sites; and training and supervision across the region for the treatment of traumatized and abused children. Through these programs and more, CHaD's child psychiatry program helps children and adolescents and their families alleviate the painful and often serious consequences of mental health problems.

Molly's Place: the CHaD Family Center

Completely funded through philanthropy, CHaD's Family Center is a place of refuge and support for CHaD families, including a play area for children and a space where families can relax between appointments. Molly's Place also provides patient education and information via an extensive lending library and website, and its staff works closely with families to link them to needed community resources and financial assistance. New this year, the center's staff is collaborating with CHaD Child Life and David's House in supporting families dealing with grief. Other activities include parent support groups, coffee hours on CHaD inpatient units, and the popular Fuel the Care Program, which provides gas vouchers for those traveling long distances to CHaD.

Child Life

Those who support the Child Life program make a significant difference in the lives of sick children every single day. CHaD's Child Life specialists are caring and experienced hand-holders who attend to the emotional, developmental, and social needs of our young patients. This includes helping kids understand and cope with their illness or treatment; preparing them for a medical experience that may be frightening, painful, or stressful; arranging for a tutor during a child's lengthy hospitalization; or just helping a child overcome the scary feeling of being in the hospital. Countless families benefit from programming like Camp CHaD and daily activities on our inpatient unit. Philanthropy not only supports our Child Life specialists, who work with more than 4,000 kids each year, but also pays for needs such as baby swings, toys, books, and entertainment and art supplies. In addition, the Child Life team has developed on-line tools and resources to help families prepare their child to come to CHaD.

Neuroscience endowment and research

Brain trauma is a principal cause of death and disability in children in the U.S. Led by Dr. Tina Duhaime, a pediatric neurosurgeon and internationally renowned expert in traumatic brain injury in children, CHaD's neuroscience research program is on the forefront of efforts to understand how young brains develop and how they respond to injury. Dr. Duhaime brings the insights gained from her research directly to her young patients, as she and her colleagues forge pioneering solutions for children suffering from epilepsy or potentially devastating brain injuries. Philanthropic dollars provide crucial support for this search for new knowledge and are building an endowment for future research.

Face of a Child (Craniofacial Clinic)

The CHaD Craniofacial Clinic is devoted to the treatment of children born with craniofacial anomalies of all kinds. These children often require complex, integrated care from a variety of specialists over many years. Philanthropic support has allowed the program to retain a full-time coordinator who organizes the multifaceted care of these children, facilitates communication and coordination among members of a multispecialty team, and helps to guide families through the long and arduous treatment process and access available support services and information. Financial support for the program has also increased the availability of orthodontic services—often a key part of a child's treatment, which is not covered by insurance—and developed family support networks and a family newsletter to connect patient families so they don't feel so alone in the challenges their child confronts.

Audiology

CHaD's audiology program serves over 500 children with minor to profound hearing loss. To help these children excel in their lives, CHaD's philanthropically-funded educational consultant facilitates the integration of their medical needs and their schooling. Parents express their gratitude for being well-supported and finally “heard” as they learn to navigate the educational services available and advocate for their child's needs. School staff note their sincere appreciation for the educational consultant's role in supporting and training educators and improving communication among all those involved in a child's care. By providing a pivotal point of coordination between the audiology staff, the child and family, and the educational team, CHaD's educational consultant is making a real difference in the lives of hearing impaired children by helping to improve their communication development and educational outcomes.

Injury Prevention

Keeping children out of the children's hospital is the mission of CHaD's Injury Prevention Center. Its region-wide efforts to keep children free from harm include providing leadership for the SafeKids New Hampshire Coalition, a gun safety coalition, and others. The Center's staff maintains a full schedule of outreach activities and disseminates information on a wide range of injury prevention topics from Halloween safety to gun safety to the use of bike helmets. Through its child passenger safety program, the Injury Prevention Center conducts over 2,000 car safety seat checks annually. Its Interactive Kits engage kids of all ages in learning about injury prevention. The many programs of the Injury Prevention Center rely on funding from a variety of sources, including philanthropic support from community members who value its services.