Health + Wellness + Safety

gastroschisis patient Andres

Andres’ Birth Defect and Battle with Gastroschisis 

Pediatric surgeon Paul Danielson, M.D., at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, has often been called in the middle of the night to perform lifesaving surgery. But when Andres was born in 2022, it was a surgical scenario that Danielson had never experienced in his medical career. Andres had gastroschisis, a birth defect that occurs when…

Give Back Alex Kulzer
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Alex’s Touching ‘Give Back’ Project After Years of Hospital Care

Alex Kulzer stacks hundreds of toys in bins and pushes them proudly through the entrance of Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. “I’m giving back to my community in a place that I grew up in,” says lifelong patient, 18-year-old Alex. “You never want to say, ‘I grew up in a hospital getting tests done,’ but…

Protecting Children from their devices

Disconnected – Protecting Kids From Their Devices is in Your Hands

If you had the power to protect your children from depression and anxiety, would you? Even though any parent would answer “yes” to that question, a valuable weapon in their arsenal often goes unused: the word “no.” Psychotherapist and author Thomas Kersting makes the case for prohibiting or limiting children’s screentime in “Disconnected,” which lays out…

Sturge-Weber Syndrome

Knight’s Story: Sturge-Weber Syndrome

Three-year-old Knight is a joyful ball of energy as he runs from the family’s living room to dining room to kitchen. He loves this little game, and for most 3-year-olds, this wouldn’t be an extraordinary feat. But, for this child, it is remarkable. What is Sturge-Weber Syndrome? Knight was born with Sturge-Weber Syndrome, a genetic…

Children's Mental Health

The Most Important Conversations: BayCare Kids introduces a game-changing resource to battle mental health disorders

Here’s a sobering statistic: During the past three years since the pandemic, the number of kids visiting the Emergency Room at St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital for children’s mental health disorders has increased by 300 percent. That’s a three-fold increase. Here’s another number: When it comes to available mental health resources, Florida (one of the most…

RSV

The 411 on RSV | What you need to know about this common virus

 We’re catching up again with Dr. John Prpich, BayCare Kids Pediatric Pulmonologist and Medical Director of Pediatric Respiratory Care at St Joseph’s Children’s Hospital, to learn more about RSV and a groundbreaking new medicine just approved for use in all infants to prevent RSV infection.

Preparing for the 2023 Flu Season

Ask the Doctor: How to Prepare for the 2023 Flu Season

The 2023 flu season is expected to arrive earlier than usual with an uptick in cases already occurring in September. We may also see a tricky RSV season and an upward trend in COVID as a new variant is circulating. The Flu, COVID, or RSV: What is causing my symptoms? It may be challenging to…

Hillsborough County Anti-Bullying Award

Tampa Bay’s Bully Busters: Hillsborough County Anti-Bullying Award Recipients

Each October, in honor of Bullying Awareness Month, Hillsborough County’s Anti-Bullying Awareness Committee recognizes a student or students who have gone above and beyond to make a difference in our community. This year, it wasn’t just one person who stood out, but a local elementary school student and a group of students who are taking…

Bullying Prevention teenage girls on cellphone

It’s Bullying Prevention Month: Tips to Support Your Kids 

Bullying is when a person or group repeatedly tries to harm someone who is weaker or who they think is weaker, and there is some type of power differential in place. This can take a psychological toll on the child being bullied, sometimes lasting a lifetime. October is Bullying Prevention Month Below are answers to…

Safety Awareness Tips for Parents: a girl fastens another girl's bike helmet.

Safety Awareness Tips for Parents with Kids of All Ages

As parents, we naturally worry about our children. Whether we’re trying to protect them from mishaps as toddlers or shelter them from high-risk behaviors as teens, safety is always at the top of our minds. So how do you keep up when potential risks and dangers look so very different at every age and stage?…

Pelvic Floor Therapy, The HOPE Docs
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Pregnancy and Your Pelvic Floor: Why exercise and pelvic floor therapy matter

Your pelvic floor probably doesn’t come up in routine conversations with friends and family. However, if you’re pregnant or have had a baby, you’ve probably either thought about it or felt the impacts post-partum, even years after childbirth.

Clearwater Marine Aquarium Parenting Class
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CMA and Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital Team Up to Offer Free Parenting Classes

The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is teaming up with Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital to offer free parenting classes at CMA with classes that focus on different developmental milestones including speech, feeding, and reading for children from birth to 5-years-old.

Pediatric Cancer

Friends Forever: Pediatric Cancer Diagnoses Lead to a Special Childhood Friendship

This is the story of two friends who found each other. Four-year-old Bjorn and 5-year-old Ryan had never met. But in August of 2021, both were taken to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital with troubling symptoms. Pediatric Cancer Diagnosis Within the same week, both received the same devastating diagnosis: acute myeloid leukemia. “The moment I was told…

Childhood Injury Prevention

Safe September: BayCare Kids safety expert shares tips to prevent injury

September is all about back-to-school, but it’s also the month set aside for a more sobering “b” word—boo boos. National Childhood Injury Prevention Month is underway No one sees more injuries than the people who work at hospitals. BayCare Kids Wellness and Safety Specialist Michelle Sterling shares the four top injuries health care workers see…

Isabella’s Tale: How TGH’s Pediatric GI Program Came to the Rescue

Isabella’s Tale: How TGH’s Pediatric GI Program Came to the Rescue

The nightmare began with a simple shopping-mall pretzel. But thankfully for a Tampa Bay middle-schooler named Isabella, a scary and painful ordeal ended with the help of the Tampa General Hospital (TGH) Children’s Hospital’s acclaimed pediatric gastrointestinal (GI) program in collaboration with the sole academic GI program in Tampa Bay, USF Health Pediatric Gastroenterology. Tampa…

How to Pick and Wear a Backpack
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How to Pick and Wear a Backpack

Backpacks are a back-to-school staple and necessity, but they tend to get heavier each year as students get older, which can be concerning for parents. Ryan Fitzgerald, M.D., a fellowship-trained pediatric orthopaedic surgeon with Children’s Orthopaedic and Scoliosis Surgery Associates (COSSA), treats patients at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. He shares backpack safety tips to…

hospital facility dog program

Four Paws and a Heart of Gold: St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital launches new facility dog program with its first four-legged employee

No one wants to find themselves in a situation where their child has to be admitted to a hospital. But if your family does have to do so, at St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital, you can rest easy knowing that your child is in the hands of some of the country’s most sought-after, highly trained professionals….

Cleft Lip and Palate

Cleft Lip and Palate Awareness Month: One in a Million Bree

July is National Cleft Lip and Palate Craniofacial Awareness Month. Five-year-old Bree Brown is very special. So special, in fact, that she is literally one in a million. “Bree wasn’t breathing when she was born,” reflects an emotional Areen, Bree’s mom. During Areen’s pregnancy, Bree wasn’t measuring properly on sonograms. It was discovered that she…

Dr. Luis Rodriguez

Dr. Luis Rodriguez: Healthcare Hero Dad and Local Neurosurgeon

Modern day Brady Bunch families really do exist, just ask Luis Rodriguez, M.D., M.A.S., and his wife Lisa Moore, M.S.N., M.H.A, R.N., who both work at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. Dr. Luis Rodriguez is a neurosurgeon and Moore can be found in the cardiovascular ICU. This Father’s Day, Dr. Rodriguez reflects on his work as a…

water safety to prevent drowning

Local Family Shares Story to Prevent Drownings

Water is part of the allure of living in Florida, but few realize that drowning is the leading cause of death among Florida children ages 1-4. Water Safety to Prevent Drownings One family is incredibly grateful to have averted such a tragedy. Having recently moved from Washington State to Venice, Florida, the family of five…

Lion’s Eye Institute for Transplant and Research

Clear Sight: One Family’s Journey to Better Vision with the Help of Lion’s Eye Institute

Samantha Barlow’s mother, Julie, was the first to see that something was clouding her newborn baby’s beautiful deep blue eyes. When Julie held her daughter for the first time, Barlow looked up at her mother but seemed unable to really meet her adoring gaze. Julie wouldn’t let it go. A flurry of doctors and specialists…

Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia

Celebrating Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia in April and Those Traveling to Tampa Bay for Care

The Center for Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, led by David Kays, M.D., was founded as the country’s first inpatient CDH unit with surgeons, nurses and other team members solely focused on CDH care.

Occupational Therapy

How Occupational Therapy Helps Kids Return to a Normal Life

April is Occupational Therapy Month. It’s a time to recognize the achievements of patients like 13-year-old Jaden who recovered from a serious accident, thanks, in part, to the efforts of occupational therapist Rachael Thibeau and other experts at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. Jaden had gone for a ride on his friend’s pontoon boat on…

TGH Maternal Fetal Medicine

The Highest Level of Care: TGH’s Nationally Acclaimed Maternal-Fetal Medicine Program

The Maternal Fetal Medicine program and Fetal Care Center at Tampa General earned a spot on Newsweek’s List of Best Maternity Hospitals in 2022 and was named highest ranked in Florida for Obstetrics & Gynecology by U.S. News & World Report for 2022-2023.

Behave Your Best 
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Why can’t they just behave? The truth behind your child’s unwanted behavior (and what to do about it!) 

When we have the right tools to address our child’s unwanted behaviors, difficult situations become easier to handle and our confidence as parents grows. Behave Your Best explores two common unwanted behaviors and what you can do to stop them.

High Blood Pressure in Children

High Blood Pressure, Salt Intake and Your Child’s Heart

High blood pressure, also called hypertension, is usually seen in adults, but pediatricians and pediatric cardiologists are seeing this more often in children. Higher blood pressure means the pressure in the blood vessels is increased, causing the heart and other organs to work harder. This can put people at a higher risk for chronic illnesses…

Bilateral Cleft Lip and Palate Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital.

Logan’s Life Changing Surgery at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital to Repair a Bilateral Cleft Lip and Palate

When Logan was born with a complete bilateral cleft lip and palate, they sought help from Alex Rottgers, MD, a highly skilled pediatric plastic surgeon at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg.

youth sports

The Positive Power of Youth Sports

Mental health took a hit during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lockdowns, quarantines and distancing meant that outside activities like youth sports were put on hold. For some kids, sports were their outlet, their stress release and their social circle. Taking all of that away at once can certainly have a huge impact—especially at such a young…

gene therapy miracle drug

The Elixir of Life: St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital administers miracle drug that saves babies from progressive neuromuscular degeneration

Thanks to a recently approved gene therapy named Zolgensma, the outlook for babies born with SMA has suddenly brightened.