Ellie was diagnosed at birth with complex congenital heart defects, a cleft palate, and a smaller head than expected for her size, known as microcephaly. Her parents knew they would need a highly ranked hospital capable of caring for their daughter's complex needs so at just 1-month-old, Ellie was transferred from her local hospital to Nationwide Children’s Hospital. 

Once she arrived, Ellie and her parents met with the teams that would be taking care of her, from cardiology, to craniofacial, to complex care, and many more specialists. Since then, she has had hundreds of appointments, received additional diagnoses, including apraxia of speech, epilepsy and cerebral palsy, and has had many surgeries including open heart surgery and cleft palate repair.  

Ellie, now 6, still comes to Nationwide Children’s often, sometimes multiple times a week, to see a speech therapist, feeding therapist, occupational therapist, an augmentative and alternative communication device (AAC) therapist, and attend group therapy. 

“It can be challenging to get a complete picture of her health, so we are often hyper-aware of her baseline and look for changes regularly,” shares Rachel, Ellie’s mom. “Having medical teams that trust your judgment and respects the complexity of care feels like a home away from home.” 

“Nationwide Children’s took initiative in coordinating between teams to make things easier for us,” Rachel says. “That saves us travel time, scheduling time, and energy.” 

Ellie will receive care at Nationwide Children’s in multiple specialties her entire life. But knowing she doesn’t see the hospital as a scary place gives her parents peace of mind. “All of her teams have shown her love, respect, and enthusiasm when they see her.”