All Together Better

Meet three families who got a new chance at life and the caring hands at Children’s Minnesota that helped them get there. Plus, how the state’s largest pediatric health care organization has leaned into its mission of championing care for kids in these changing times.

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A young elite gymnast with a promising career. A baby who defied the odds to survive a rare neonatal condition. A middle schooler whose medical journey brought his family together. Meet three families who got a new chance at life and the caring hands at Children’s Minnesota that helped them get there. Plus, how the state’s largest pediatric health care organization has leaned into its mission of championing care for kids in these changing times.

A Leap of Faith

MADELYN + DR. KEBRIAEI

Following in her two older sisters’ footsteps, Madelyn became interested in gymnastics at an early age. When other 18-month-olds were just learning how to eat with a spoon or squat down to pick up a toy without losing their balance, Madelyn, now 11, was getting her first taste of the tumbling mat. She joined the Junior Olympic competitive team at age 3, where practices were marked with cartwheels, somersaults, and walk-up pullovers. “Like brushing your teeth, it kind of became a habit. I don’t even think about it anymore,” she says.

Five years into the sport, Madelyn was familiar with the occasional sprain or strain, but she was struck by a new brand of pain—one that stemmed from her lower back. Whether on the beam or on the ground, putting one foot in front of the other became nearly impossible.

Meysam Kebriaei, MD, a pediatric neurosurgeon at Children’s Minnesota, remembers meeting a “very resilient, very tough” 7-year-old when he was introduced to Madelyn.

After rounds of imaging tests, Dr. Kebriaei and his team detected a pars fracture, a relatively common injury in teens who perform athletics at a high level. It’s a break in part of the lumbar vertebrae that connects the upper joint to the lower joint of that vertebrae, caused by repetitive stress on the lower back. The goal, Dr. Kebriaei says, was to treat her pain as best and as conservatively as they could so she could get back to doing what she loved. Read more >>

A Chance Delivery

BABY MCKENNA + DR. KAMRATH

With those two unmistakably pink lines staring back at her, Nicole immediately sprung to the phone to relay the exciting development to her provider: She was finally pregnant. But instead of being met with the typical congratulatory words, her doctor cautioned that a positive pregnancy test could be an indicator for ovarian cancer—the same kind that runs on Nicole’s side of the family. This, right around the same time her own mother was battling brain cancer.

Nicole went in to get her blood drawn and it was later confirmed that she was carrying—a bright spot in the midst of familial hardship. “I just had this belief that having another baby was a given,” she says. After her husband’s cancer diagnosis in 2015, she had been told she might not be able to have more children.

Her convictions would later serve her well, particularly when she reached the 32-week mark of her pregnancy. Nicole’s belly measured in at 10 centimeters too big. She was directed to a specialist at the Children’s Minnesota Minneapolis campus, where she underwent tests and learned that baby McKenna had hydrops fetalis.

“It’s where your baby has fluid in more than two areas of their body,” she explains. Causes for the hydrops, like parvovirus and heart defects, were ruled out, but doctors soon observed that McKenna wasn’t practicing her breathing in the womb, prompting them to schedule Nicole for an emergency C-section.

“A doctor told me to be prepared that she wasn’t going to make it; she hadn’t moved with all the fluid on her,” she says. “But being that I wasn’t supposed to get pregnant to begin with, I just thought, I’ll have to fight a little harder."  Read more >>

A Gentle Leader

ELI + DR. GOEPFERD

For Nitara and her family of five, home isn’t just a physical place—it’s a sense of belonging. “As a transracial family with two moms, it’s important for us to make sure our kids see mirrors of themselves within our community,” says Nitara. “Knowing that the staff at Children’s Minnesota is diverse and our kids are used to diversity anyways, it just makes us feel that much more at home.”

The daily demands of parenting require Nitara and her spouse to be at several different places, sometimes all at once. But when it comes to their medical care, all of their needs can be found in one place—and that’s under the guidance of Angela Kade Goepferd, MD, pediatrician at Children’s Minnesota Primary Care Clinic in Minneapolis and medical director of Children’s Minnesota Gender Health program. Her first touchpoint with Nitara’s family dates back to when Eli, 12, was just a baby. Now, Dr. Goepferd serves as the primary care provider for all five children.

Dr. Goepferd endearingly remembers a large stroller spilling over with kids in her first encounter with the family. “The sight of these two moms and five kids of all ages in this big stroller trying to contain them all!” she laughs. “There is so much love in that family, and that was one of my first impressions of watching them come wheeling down the hallway.” Read more >>

A Wise Kid Once Said

Dr. Marc Gorelick, president and CEO of Children’s Minnesota, cites a recent encounter he had with a little girl in the skyway clad in a face mask and tiara. “She was waving her wand around as she walked, as if there was nothing unusual about all of it,” he says with a laugh. “And I thought, Oh my gosh, who says waving a magic wand can’t make your troubles go away?”

There’s an undercurrent of hope that flourishes through the halls, buoyed by a staff who creates a kids-first environment, a health system that boasts nearly 70 specialties to offer comprehensive care, and a shared drive for excellence.

While our changing times have presented a fair share of challenges, they’ve also created opportunities for positive change. Employee Resource Support Centers provide a 24-7 safe place for employees to recharge during heightened times of stress. Virtual visits expanded to meet the mental health needs of children. An online resource launched to provide coping strategies for parents during times of crisis.

Dr. Gorelick has been in pediatric health care for almost 35 years and says that one of the things that struck him the most about Children’s Minnesota was its mission-driven culture––an important touchstone that binds the right people together.

“Being a children’s hospital is really about understanding the unique needs that kids have,” he says. “Our people are really attuned to what children need at different stages of their lives.”

This article originally appeared in the August 2020 issue of Mpls.St.Paul Magazine.