Jillian Rose’s little brother, William, needed surgery to help him eat as a baby. With multiple visits to his pediatrician, a surgery and hospital stay, William now is eating and growing. To thank the hospital that saved her brother’s life, Jillian and her family have signed up to be Change Bandits to raise money for Akron Children’s “Have a Heart, Do Your Part” radiothon, which airs Feb. 12-14 on 98.1 WKDD. Sign up to support the radiothon.
Here’s her mom’s story.
When our son William was 6 months old, we went to the pediatrician’s office because he was a noisy breather and got congested when he ate.
They ordered a cookie swallow test to see how he would handle the liquids he was eating. He failed the test and aspirated on the liquids, so we thickened his formula.
We had to use special bottles and nipples because the formula was so thick.
When he turned 1, we repeated the swallowing test. He failed again. We still had to thicken all of his liquids.
This past August, Dr. Albert put tubes in William’s ears because he had a lot of ear infections and needed his adenoids removed. He was hoping that since his adenoids were so enlarged, removing them would help with his dysphagia.
William went for a follow-up test about a month after the surgery.
Dr. Albert tested his hearing and he passed. Then he went for another swallowing test. I was hoping he would pass, but he failed so badly that they kept us at the hospital.
During a follow-up visit with our pediatrician, they tried to put in an NG tube, and it didn’t stay. That was when they decided to admit him to the hospital.
The nursing staff was amazing. They took excellent care of William.
The whole time we were in the hospital, the only thing we watched from the time he woke up to the time he went to bed was Frozen. Nurses even came into his room singing Frozen songs to him.
When it was time for surgery, we were in the waiting area. The anesthesia nurse came to take William, but he didn’t want to go.
When the nurse put on a white hat and started to sing Frozen, he called the nurse “Olaf” and felt better about going to surgery.
Dr. Pittinger placed a mini feeding tube so he could have his liquids. This was the safest option for him, and he is now adapting to it. He is able to eat solids but all of his liquids have to go in his feeding tube.
This year, the radiothon means a lot to my 6-year-old daughter, Jillian Rose. She wanted to be a Change Bandit to help the hospital after they saved her brother’s life. She wrote letters and mailed them, put a collection box in her classroom, sold hearts and hosted a fundraiser at CiCi’s where she bussed tables. She did this all by herself.
We are so thankful to have a wonderful hospital nearby. They have helped my family so many ways.
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