It goes everywhere

Many of you asked for the make of this all-terrain wheelchair yesterday. I spoke to the vendor today, and it's a Terratrek by Motion Concepts, available in Canada and the U.S. (and I'm not sure where else). I've been able to push it through sand and across the shallow part of a rock-strewn lake and I know it was used in all kinds of conditions at camp. Ben is very light, so I'm not sure how challenging it is to push with more weight. For...

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This and that

This all-terrain wheelchair goes everywhere! It's the one the Sunshine Foundation rented for us for Ben's time at camp. It's got thick wheels with big treads. It's a dream to push and I've been able to drive it over sandy beach, muddy path and in rocky water. We've rediscovered Cherry Beach on Lake Ontario and it's awesome to be able to walk through the rock-strewn water wearing a pair of flip-flops and pushing Ben. Our dog, Mr. Dumpling, likes...

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'Where dreams are made of'

My daughter and I were in the car when rapper Jay-Z's "Empire State of Mind" came on. In New York, Concrete jungle where dreams are made of, There's nothing you can't do, Now you're in New York, These streets will make you feel brand new, the lights will inspire you... "It's Salamander's song!" I gasped, remembering the young man who hung out with us in the teen lounge when Ben was an inpatient. My younger son confused his name,...

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Worlds apart

I'm happy to let you know that I've been asked to write once a month for Hopeful Parents. You can read my piece Worlds apart there today. Hopeful Parents is an online community of parents of children with special needs. You can read a variety of posts by parents just like you or chat online with them. I like the way Hopeful Parents describes its mandate for writers: Let's start with what we're not about, because that paints a clear picture: we're not about providing solutions, we're not a how-to site, we don't give answers on why a condition...

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Parent presence at induction: An anesthesiologist speaks

After my last post supporting the option of parent presence when a child is anesthetized for surgery, many parents and a reader with a disability shared their experiences and opinions. I wanted to hear the perspective of an anesthesiologist, so I posted a query on the pediatric anesthesia forum run through SickKids in Toronto. This online forum draws questions and insights from children's anesthesiologists from around the world. I was delighted to hear from Dr. Matthias Konig of Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. Our correspondence...

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In the OR he wanted me -- not his fire hat

I remember when I first purchased my son's medical records how wrenching it was to read how he had reacted to being 'put under' when taken to the operating room. Dec 20, 96: Anxious but cooperative. April 14, 97: Teary-eyed 3-year-old (I wept when the record noted that he carried his beloved red fire hat). May 27, 97: Cried on induction (Fire hat and butterfly net in attendance). Dec 15, 97: Cried on induction. Of course I didn't...

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Wanted: Your stories

Last year Columbia University launched the first graduate program in Narrative Medicine, noting that "our modern medical system has all but forgotten the critical importance of stories: stories of suffering, stories of healing, stories of the relationships that tie patients to their clinicians." In an earlier Journal of the American Medical Association article, Dr. Rita Charon, founder of the new program, describes Narrative Medicine like this:...

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Camp week 1

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