Meet Raymond

Meet Raymond, our first acute rehabilitation patient under the age of 3. On July 11^th of this year, Raymond made history when he became the first infant to be admitted into our acute rehabilitation program. Prior to his admission, Totally Kids Rehabilitation Hospital was licensed to provide care to kids and young adults ages 3 to 21. That all changed when state agencies gave us approval to lower our age of admission to 0. 

At around 8 months of age, Raymond was transferred to Totally Kids from a neighboring hospital to continue receiving care and rehabilitation. Raymond was a twin baby, who was born prematurely and with low birth weight. While at home, he suffered an accident for which he was hospitalized to undergo a craniotomy due to a closed fracture to his skull. 
Upon returning home, Raymond experienced breathing problems, including respiratory failure with hypoxia due to whooping cough. His situation became more challenging due to his feeding aversion, or inability to eat by mouth. Raymond was once again hospitalized, and his feedings through a nasogastric tube. His parents were concerned about his injuries and his inability to eat by mouth. They feared he would remain on a nasogastric tube for the foreseeable future. They wanted Raymond to become a healthy boy who could eat by mouth like a typical child.

At Totally Kids, Raymond received physical, speech, occupational, and recreation therapy 6 days a week. Due to his age, the therapy team worked around his naps and feeding times, and, when appropriate, provided several therapies simultaneously. The results were amazing and became evident very quickly. Raymond connected with the nursing and therapy staff in a way that he had not been able to at other facilities. Working with our speech therapist, Raymond worked on his nippling skills and swallowing. In just a few days he was able to take 100% of his feedings through a bottle. 

Our physical and occupational therapists also worked with him, ensuring that he increased his motor skills and gained muscle tone. Raymond became stronger and able to smile. Although he continued to be a little small for his age, he was stable and ready to be discharged to go home with his parents and siblings.

We are thrilled to have played an important part in Raymond’s recovery. We look forward to seeing him thrive and grow up to be a healthy boy!