2020 - 2021 LHL Impact Video
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C.S. Mott Program Expansion
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Charlotte’s Story
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Nasir’s Story
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“Babies with high-level medical needs stand to benefit considerably from well-orchestrated care coordination at the very beginning of their lives.”
Most medically complex patients do not qualify for care coordination through their healthcare insurance.
For those that do, the impact is limited as it can takes six months to get approved for services - often times too late.
Often these care coordinators are juggling caseloads of as many as 75 children - too many to be truly effective.
Many well-intentioned parents are unable to coordinate this high-level of care on their own.
May feel inundated as they try to cope emotionally with their baby’s long-term illness.
A trip anywhere outside the home is difficult because most of these babies depend on assistive devices such as ventilators, monitors or feeding tubes.
Often, the result from these difficult situations is inadequate follow-up care that leads to multiple trips back to the Emergency Department and hospital readmissions because their baby’s health has not been well managed.
These patients are usually seen by many medical specialists to treat and monitor disorders in different organ systems.
To survive, they must undergo multiple surgeries, needle sticks, anesthesia and other procedures.
For babies who have left the hospital, eliminating the need for another doctor visit is frequently the best choice if care can be provided at home or if care can be accomplished with fewer trips to the hospital.
Little Heroes League provides funding and program goals to our partner hospitals, who provide specialized care coordination during this critical period and after discharge from the hospital.
Coordinated care meets babies born with medically complexity special needs by providing highly organized care in the hospital, at home and through community providers that result in the safest and most effective treatment for these children and maximizes their time at home.
Nurses and social workers are dedicated exclusively to these babies and serve as the point person to organize care for each of these children and to help the needs of their families.
Acting as an advocate for each baby, they coordinate multiple pediatric specialists, coordinate procedures and anticipate what each child needs. They are also adept at navigating the health care system, which can be a daunting task for parents of children with complex health needs.
They are the central contact and source of comfort for these families, whom they will also support by identifying social service and health care agencies closer to home, and conducting home visits.
The early months in life are when pain reduction can hold tremendous advantages for a baby’s rapidly growing brain, and when proper interventions such as restoring hearing or vision can impact social, emotional and language development that lasts for a lifetime. Little Heroes League and Lurie Children’s are committed to capturing these opportunities by providing highly coordinated care for these babies.
Reduces unnecessary & duplicative procedures
Reduces length of hospital stays
Reduces number of hospital admissions
Reduces Emergency Department visits
Reduces pain and enables more time at home
Reduces the emotional and physical stress
Reduces healthcare expenses
Fewer misunderstandings about medical care
Fewer missed days from work
Reduce travel to hospital
Click the video above to see the incredible piece Mai Martinez and CBS News did in honor of Little Heroes League’s first donation to kick-off our program at Ann & Robert H Lurie’s Children’s Hospital of Chicago. Livi couldn’t think of a more fitting gift to celebrate her 1st birthday.
