Transition from Pediatric to Adult Care
Oftentimes as caregivers, we take on the responsibility of caring for every aspect of our transplanted child's life. We feel it is our duty to ensure the transplanted organ will last as long as possible, so we remind our children to take their medicine, do their lab work, and go to follow-up appointments to ensure their organ stays healthy. It is important to remember that eventually, our children will become adults who care for themselves. For this reason, we must gradually give them the tools they need to care for their physical, emotional and financial adult selves. This transfer of responsibility is important in what is called transition and transfer of care. Many hospitals start this process when a transplanted child turns 10-12 years old.
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Please find two links to presentations made at Transplant Families' Pediatric Transplant Conference in 2022 and 2023 about Transition to Adult Care:
PTC 2022
PTC 2023
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Ask your child's clinicians for more information about their transition program. If you have good resources from your transplant center about Transition to Adult Care that you would like to share with us, please email us at: hello@transplantfamilies.org. You can also reference these helpful resources:
Gottransition.org
An organization dedicated to helping children and caregivers transition from pediatric to adult care in a variety of situations. The website contains helpful assessments that the child and the caregiver can take to determine what information needs to be shared with the child in order that she can manage her own healthcare.