Patient and Family Perspectives

Featuring members of EMSC’s Family Advisory Network (FAN). Learn more about the FAN.

Name: Jill McCormick

State/Territory: Washington

Why did you become a FAN? “I started spending time with my children in the emergency room before working with children and youth with special healthcare needs as my profession. I have three children who are now young adults and two of them have spent significant time in the ER and various times in their lives. My daughter has asthma, which was exacerbated by H1N1, and spent many winters going to the ER. My youngest was diagnosed with a significant heart condition at 8 and that same year had a major cardiac arrest. His internal defibrillator would go off at school and we would end up being transported to the children’s hospital several times a year until he received his heart transplant at 19. This time spent in multiple ERs with multiple sets of providers and multiple sets of responders gave me a chance to observe a wide range of practices that I wanted to be able to reflect on.”

What is the most important thing for emergency practitioners to know about caring for children? “That the parent/family and the child can give you your best strategies for care. See if there are communication devices or a care map, pictures, or other steps to help with lowering the barriers of communication. Patients do know their own bodies best and families know their child.”