With the Christmas holiday less than a week away, Christus Children’s Hospital staff want all patients to feel at home this holiday season.
Hospital stays can be scary and lonely for children, especially during the holidays. That’s where the hospital’s Child Life department steps in.
“We’re here to help that family cope, especially during the holidays and the milestones that we have here, and provide that normalcy,” said Alexis Medina, Child Life Coordinator.
Over the holiday season, Child Life will host an array of events for families at the hospital to participate in.
Some of those include:
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Christmas tree lighting ceremony
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Visits from Santa
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An opportunity to send letters to Santa
“Santa comes and delivers his mailbox here at our hospital to make sure that he writes back to all of our patients here,” Medina said.
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Santa’s workshop
“It’s (Santa’s workshop) a guardian-only event, and this kind of helps that they’re not out fighting the holiday traffic and also that financial relief that they’re able to not only provide presents for the patients but also siblings and their other children that they care for as well,” said Medina.
Events like these mean a lot to many families, especially to Erika Mulsow, whose 9-year-old son Teddy has been a patient at Christus Children’s Hospital off and on for nearly his whole life.
When Teddy was born in Aug. 2015, he was without oxygen for over 26 minutes, which led to a complex life of medical fragilities. Mulsow moved her family to San Antonio, where Teddy could get the care she said her son needed.
“This has been a very special place for us because we have had a ton of hospitalizations here. It’s kind of our comfort place for when we need help,” Mulsow said.
During Teddy’s hospital stays, Mulsow became inspired to help other families in need at the hospital. That led to her becoming a volunteer on the family advisory board, which she has been a part of for seven years.
“Volunteering is everything. I mean, we’ve been given so much with my son’s life that it’s important that everyone gives back to the community,” said Mulsow.
Mulsow and her son have spent multiple holidays in the hospital, including Christmas. She believes Child Life does its best job to help families feel a sense of normalcy during tough times.
“I know it can be very lonely being in a hospital setting. I just want families to know that this is a special place,” Mulsow said.
Child Life works with families with children from days old to 19 years old.