Besides stealing our hearts by being cute — and in many cases, fluffy — our four-legged friends who are trained as therapy animals have numerous health benefits to offer. Animal assisted therapy is proven to help with both mental and physical conditions. Even healthy people can benefit from animal therapy. Many hospitals offer various animal therapy programs to assist patients in healing. In fact, this is a practice that dates back to the ancient Greeks, who were said to use horses to cheer up patients.   Benefits of Animal Therapy  Animal therapy has physical benefits that include:  Lowering blood pressure  Releasing oxytocin, which has a calming effect   Lessening any physical pain patients have   On top of the physical benefits, animal therapy also has mental health benefits such as:  Decreasing feelings of loneliness and isolation  Lowering stress  Providing a sense of comfort  Nemours Children’s Health System offers animal therapy programs at their hospitals in Delaware and Florida as a part of their commitment to caring for the whole child. One program offered in Florida […]

Your family may have canceled or shuffled summer plans during the height of the pandemic in 2020, hoping for a more exciting summer this year. So, as vaccination efforts ramp up and more of the U.S. population becomes fully vaccinated, you might be wondering what this summer has in store for your children. Will the family be able to travel? Will unvaccinated children be able to visit their grandparents? What about summer camp? It’s not entirely clear what direction the pandemic will take over the next few months. Experts are recommending we keep our guard up until more is known about how the vaccine efforts stand up against the coronavirus and its new variants. But kids can plan for a great summer, as long as families keep these points in mind: Weigh benefits versus risks.  As a family, try to assess your plans objectively. Flying with unvaccinated kids to a crowded […]

When Erin Pitts faced spinal surgery as a teen, she never imagined it would impact her life in other ways. Diagnosed with scoliosis at a young age, initially the care plan for the Jacksonville, Fla., resident was to pursue a non-surgical approach to correct the curves in her spine using a back brace. When her complex scoliosis proved resistant to treatment, however, surgery became the best option for long-term results. The experience ended up changing not only her health, but also her career trajectory. Pitts first learned of her condition in the sixth grade, when she began experiencing intense lower back pain. As her condition gradually began limiting her daily activities, her mom made an appointment with her pediatrician. He referred her to Nemours for an orthopedic assessment, where she became a patient of Eric Loveless, MD, department chair of orthopedics at Nemours and a board-certified pediatric surgeon who performs […]

We have been living with COVID-19 for over a year. While there is a light at the end of this pandemic tunnel, we haven’t reached it yet. More than 30 million Americans have been infected with coronavirus, and the number of people getting infected each day is rising again. Experts are concerned about a new surge. With vaccines finally becoming widely available, it is tempting to leave the pandemic behind and get back to “normal” life. But public health and medical professionals say “not yet.” We need to keep our guard up just a little longer until it is clearer that we are winning the battle against coronavirus. Here are a few reasons why we still need to be cautious: Not enough people have been vaccinated yet. The vaccines available in the United States are safe and very good at preventing severe illness, hospitalization, and death from COVID-19. But only […]

It clearly goes without saying that we are living in challenging times. Everyone is doing the best they can, finding ways to cope and adjust to this so-called “new normal.” But it’s important to remember this:  it’s okay to not be okay. Things are hard, they are different, and everyone processes those hardships and changes in unique ways. One way to cope with a difficult or stressful situation is to speak with someone, to be heard and seen. A listening and non-judgmental ear is often comforting and can be a resource of support without focusing on “fixing” the problem. At Nemours Children’s Health System, we offer the Peer Support Program, which provides confidential, free support to all our associates. By being paired with a peer supporter, the person seeking support can speak with a fellow associate, who understands their work-life, and may relate to what they are going through or […]

The pandemic has affected our lives for almost a year and many of us have become used to wearing a mask and social distancing. We must keep doing everything we can, and that means staying six — not four — feet apart and wearing a mask properly at all times. We should also encourage others to do the same so we can eventually have a life without the fear of COVID-19. The only way we can get through this is together, but six feet apart, of course!