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Pediatric Specialty Care
Orthopaedics
Pediatric Specialty Care
Orthopaedics
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Summer Transitions Program Prepares Patients for Adulthood
September 8, 2009
Nineteen-year-old Kechi Okwuchi is one of many Shriners Hospitals for Children’s patients to participate in summer programs designed to help them prepare for adult life, including education and employment opportunities. She has been a patient at Shriners Hospitals for Children since 2005 when she sustained burns over more than 60 percent of her body as a result of an airplane crash. She has had to undergo multiple skin grafts and surgeries for contractions and other difficulties, but is doing quite well.Kechi participated in Shriners Hospitals for Children — Houston’s Transitions for Life program, which provided the teens with employment experience, giving them a wealth of learning experiences and the chance to develop many valuable skills which will help them in the adult world. However, before the patients started their jobs, they attended a seminar led by a counselor from the state agency WorkSource where they received instruction and guidance on proper job behavior, etiquette and resume-writing. Ana Calvo, the hospital’s transition coordinator, organized all the workshops and events, with the help of a committee of hospital employees.
Kechi worked at Moody Gardens for six weeks, helping in the Aquarium Pyramid souvenir store and Moody Gardens Hotel and Convention Center. “I helped with inventory and merchandising. I really enjoyed helping with the window display and being creative,” she said. The job was particularly appropriate for Kechi, who is interested in economics and marketing. She has been accepted by the University of St. Thomas in Houston for the 2010 spring semester.
In addition to providing employment experience, the program also includes college workshops and field trips to local schools.
Recently, a “Glam Camp” element was added to the Transitions for Life program, giving the young ladies in the program a chance to be pampered. The “Glam Camp” portion received some local media attention, definitely giving the girls’ self-esteem a big boost.
The "Transisitons for Life" program concluded with a recognition dinner on Aug. 15. The guest speaker, Jennifer Arnold, a pediatrician and neonatologist at Texas Children's Hospital, as well as star of the cable television show "Little Couple," shared her life story, inspiring and encouraging her young audience.
Dr. Arnold, who has a form of dwarfism, shared her motto, “ Think Big,” and told her listeners to continue to believe in themselves and follow their own dreams.
That’s good advice for everyone!
Photo: As part of the Transitions program at Shriners Hospitals for Children— Houston, Kechi worked at the Moody Gardens souvenir store, and helped create window displays and merchandise inventory.
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