Children with cancer experience invasive procedures and stressful events throughout their medical care that can impact their ability to cope, inhibit their development and negatively affect their health and well-being throughout life. Child life supports effective healthcare and reduces trauma. Morgan Livingstone CCLS describes how WE C Hope is bringing hope through Child Life to children and their families in Africa.
On March 10, 2019, our beloved child life specialist Jayne Kamau died aboard Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302 as she returned home from SIOPAfrica in Cairo. WE C Hope Child Life Director, Morgan Livingstone, reflects on more than a decade of mentoring, friendship and working together to advance child life in Kenya. Co-authored with WE C Hope CEO, Abby White.
Most children in low- and middle-income countries face hospitalization without the vital psychosocial support they need. WE C Hope’s Certified Child Life Specialist Morgan Livingstone shares how sustainable child life programs are transforming paediatric care in under-resourced settings. She explores the power of partnership, training, and local leadership in building sustainable child life services that meet unique community needs.
Child life helps families cope with retinoblastoma care, reducing trauma, and building hope. Yet access remains limited worldwide. March is Child Life Month and the birthday of our beloved Rati, whose brief life inspired World Eye Cancer Hope. From her care in Canada to Kenya, One Rb World and beyond, WE C Hope CEO, Abby White, explores how child life became central to our mission.
Evalynn, Gabriel, Abby and John all developed strabismus (squint or turned eye), one of the most common signs of retinoblastoma. This can also occur in healthy eyes or affect multiple family members without eye cancer. Sandra Staffieri, Retinoblastoma Care Co-ordinator at the Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, explains, and answers the key question – when should parents and doctors be concerned?
Early diagnosis of retinoblastoma saves children’s lives, and offers the best opportunity for safe vision saving therapy. But worldwide, many children are diagnosed late. KnowTheGlow founder, Megan Webber, and WE C Hope USA President, Marissa D. Gonzalez discuss how our early detection partnership evolved, and update on the progress we’re making for children in Africa and Asia.
Worldwide, children and their families grapple with life-threatening eye cancer due to delayed diagnosis and care. Unchecked, retinoblastoma has far-reaching consequences. Through two family stories, WE C Hope CEO Abby White explores the impacts of low awareness, slow referral, and delayed care, and the life-saving, sight-saving opportunities they reveal.
Critical clues to a child’s eye cancer hide in plain sight. Parent and physician knowledge, and ability to spot these silent signs are vital to early detection, swift referral, and prompt diagnosis. Meet five children from around the world whose parents’ curiosity, nagging concern, and action were pivotal to their diagnosis and life-saving, sight-saving care.
Screening children’s eyes with the Fundal “Red” Reflex is key to early detection of retinoblastoma, but until recently, it was difficult to deliver in many countries. Dr Andrew Blaikie, ophthalmologist and clinical lead for the Arclight Project at the University of St Andrews, describes the importance of this simple exam, and how the Arclight improves eye health access and outcomes for children with eye cancer around the world.
Daisy’s Eye Cancer Fund (now World Eye Cancer Hope) evolved from the generosity of one family sharing hope with another at opposite ends of the earth, creating light within the darkness that retinoblastoma brought to their lives. Rb Survivor and Daisy Fund co-founder, Abby White, shares Rati’s story, and how her experience led to our hope-building work today.
