Yesterday, Kailey welcomed a young patient to the Infusion Center for their first infusion. When scheduling the appointment, the patient's mom told us that her daughter was very anxious about the IV start, but when they arrived, the patient would hardly come in the door. The patient was standing by the desk, refusing to come in, yelling, and even swearing at her mom. It was much worse than we had anticipated.

Kailey calmly reassured the patient that she wasn't going to do anything without telling her, no surprises. Kailey went to get the patient hot cocoa and set it down at the small table by our toy play area. They started painting and playing with toys. Kailey slowly but surely got the patient to sit down, she introduced IV supplies using medical play, she introduced numbing cream, and got the patient to agree to use something.

When it came time for the IV start, Kailey set up a separate area with comfort and distraction items. The patient's mom said she has kicked and screamed in the past. However, with Kailey's care the patient tolerated the IV start, infusion, and IV removal without any tears and no yelling or screaming or anything. It was an amazing transformation. Kailey embodied everything we aim to do for our pediatric patients, helping her so gracefully to have the best first experience and setting her up for success in future appointments. Thank you, Kailey!