Back-To-School at Ranken Jordan | By Kristin LaRose, Chief Nursing Officer

New notebooks, cute haircuts, chatting with friends about schedules and teachers: these are some of the most exciting hallmarks of a new school year. While the back-to-school season looks different for a child with complex medical needs, it is still a vital time for growth and new beginnings.

Learning is a fundamental part of child development. Whether it is helping children transition from hospital to school, or providing in-hospital education, Ranken Jordan is committed to giving our patients a positive, fulfilling back-to-school experience.

“For families dealing with complex medical information, education can be a secondary thought,” said Margaret Chastain, Director of Patient Experience. “It is important for us to reduce that burden and help with this critical component of child development – education.”

Every patient meets with our Educational Liaisons within their first week at Ranken Jordan.

Our Educational Liaisons assist children from preschool through high school, ensuring that each child’s unique educational needs are met.

For our youngest patients, ages 0-5, that is through our innovative OZ program: a specialized initiative that supports the development of social skills, mobility, and more, all while receiving medical care.

Patients who are at Ranken Jordan for longer than three weeks may also receive homebound education through their regular or St. Louis Special School District. These kids are taught within Ranken Jordan, and our Educational Liaisons coordinate the coursework and teacher visits around the child’s hospital schedule.

Our three Educational Liaisons at Ranken Jordan wear many hats, but they have one clear goal: to ensure the educational and developmental needs of the child are met along with their physical needs.

While not educators, these Educational Liaisons – all former teachers – are experts at navigating unique needs between the hospital and the child’s school district.

Among the various roles they play, the Educational Liaisons coordinate schedules, ensure kids are equipped with the right infrastructure, advocate for IEP and 504 plans (for specialized educational needs and/or accommodations at school), and ensure that each child has their unique needs met.

In short, they address the unknowns head-on for families wading through murky new waters.

Chastain continues: “Our Liaisons have a unique, complex and sometimes delicate role as they balance the push-and-pull needs of the families, the healthcare and the educational systems.”

When patients are able to return home and to a traditional school setting, Ranken Jordan’s Educational Liaisons work with the school districts and families to ease that process too. There is an overwhelming amount of information that families face when making this transition. And we are here to help.

Studies show that the longer kids are hospitalized, the more they fall behind developmentally.

From the moment a child enters Ranken Jordan, we focus on their medical care and plan to get home, but also, how to ensure that they live as normal of a life as possible at each stage; how we can help develop their minds, body andspirits.

This includes their intellectual and emotional development, which is why school is fundamental to our care plans.

Our team works tirelessly to get children out of their rooms and into an immersive world of learning with educational programs to make this season a more exciting and less daunting one.

After all, back-to-school season should be a joyous time, and preserving that magic for our kids drives us to do our best work, day in and day out.