Personal Narrative: A Night At Seattle Children's Hospital

The Safeguarding Adults Board asked Margaret Flynn to say what should be done to make sure that patients aren’t hurt like this again. She said that the best place to care for people with learning disabilities and autism is in their homes and communities where they are known. When people go into hospitals for assessment and treatment, there are risks: they may get hurt, they may be there for a long time and they may lose touch with people who matter to them. There should be better ways of checking hospitals for adults with learning disabilities and autism to make sure that patients are safe.

As I walked into the Petaluma Health Center it dawns on me that it was Halloween. Edwin and I were not informed that everyone would be dressing up for the day. We ran into Amy and were told that we would have an office for the day. This was a pleasant surprise because we have been working in the break area the last couple of weeks. The quiet of this office allowed Edwin and I to work on parts of our presentation. Our main goal for the day was to meet up with Gabb a member of Vet Connect.

When you hear the words I am pregnant from husbands standpoint. You are over-whelmed and you think man I did it now. These are natural reactions to the news. Babies are a wonder and a blessing. They bring happiness and frustration and this is how my story goes. One that would change me forever. I found out that my wife was pregnant about six months after my wife had a miscarriage. Then that day came my son was born was amazing and change me with happiness, less sleep, and nervousness.

Tragic situations come a long way. I’ve heard stories of people dying in car crashes or losing their homes, but there are those stories that you can never let go of and keep thinking of. This was one of them. My house gardner, Jalasio Ambrosio, immigrated to the USA less than a decade ago, when Mexico was in a state of unrest. Jalasio, a man with very little education, was barely able to make a living in a town where house prices exceed one million dollars. Due to his inability to support his family, with just the income of his wife and himself, his son, Tony , was forced to drop out of school to help his parents. After hearing this, I was alarmed at the possible domino effect this could create, such as him not being able to survive in the future and so on. My belief that all children, no matter their circumstances, should receive a standard education led me towards beginning tutoring students of all ages, especially those who were underprivileged. I did not want to see other students end up in this kind of staggering situation.

I was at ease because I was in the best hands when my father sat me up on a table to wrap my sprained ankle after a reckless fall in gymnastics. He lectured me while handing me crutches and pulling me back onto my feet. “You have to take it easy until it heals,” he said as he continued to demonstrate how to properly apply my own bandages, ice my ankle and safely walk. This occurrence was not something new to me. Growing up, I was often inspired by the struggles my father underwent as an Asian immigrant fighting to open his own primary care clinic in America. However this gave me the freedom to interact directly with patients to educated people on how to promote their health and the steps to take in order to recover and return to their original lifestyles. My father’s influence and tenacious work ethic instilled in me the dedication to provide the best care possible throughout all my experiences and cultivated my desire to become an occupational therapist.

Last year with my hockey team, we got together and made blankets for sick children about to have surgery at Children's Hospital in St.Paul. About a week later, we went to the hospital and delivered the blankets to the rooms that the children would be in right before surgery. It was really fun making the blankets, and everyone felt really good afterward knowing that they were supporting the children about to have children. We did this last winter, I am not sure the exact

Maybe I was too little, or maybe I was too short, but either way I did not make the jump. In the second grade I was your average eight year old, who always wore her hair in ponytails, and enjoyed playing tag at recess. One day I saw the fifth graders on the monkey bars at recess doing something I had never seen before, they were jumping to the fourth bar. I waited untill Kids Inc. that day to try the jump, but it was no use I was acting like a scared baby.

During my time at the drop-in center I had the opportunity to be the key-note speaker for numerous churches at various youth nights and numerous youth retreats. I was also asked to represent the drop-in center at many of the churches in Winkler by giving a mission update/sermon on many of the church’s Sunday morning services throughout my tenure. In 2011, I was asked to give the message at our community’s annual summer festival where all the churches gather for a joint Sunday morning service (unsolicited, someone so was kind to video tape it and provide me with a copy).

During my two pregnancies, BabyCenter L.L.C. has been a frequently surfed guide for my children's developmental milestones. Referring to the site and zealously studying the information served as a litmus test for personal successes of parenting, in addition to my index of "expertise" for engaging in educating conversations with my pediatrician. Currently, my younger son is six-years-old. As a first grader, his teacher requires him to know his age and birth date. However, a favorable assessment considers more than the month and day; he must have knowledge of his birth year also. Therefore, my son's inability to communicate those details would alarm his teacher that he has not reached a crucial milestone in his development. Correspondingly, I

Walking nervously into my first day of working at Westfield Child Center was a defining moment that ultimately impacted my life in a way in which it would never go back to the way it once was. I can clearly remember it was a place filled with children’s excitement and staff who seemed to be a part of their own family. Everyone was extremely friendly and greeted me with open arms, however, it still did not diminish my feeling of ostracism. Whenever anyone enters a new setting, it is normal to feel excluded immediately. These feelings are natural and expected due to the lack of knowledge we have on the people in general, how the facility itself is run, and learning our place to fit into their little community. As time progressed, I found this place to be very

When I turned 11-years-old my whole childhood began to change my life went from being perfect to everything but perfect. One day I came home to hear the news my father, my best friend; my hero was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer. Not knowing the struggle my family was about to take on I just began to cry. I had a million things running through my head what’s going to happen? Will everything be okay? Why him? What is going to happen? With all these things rushing through my head all I could do was cry not knowing this was least worse to come.

He thanked all of the nurses and doctors even though half of them did not help him with his problem in the hospital. Eventually, we reached the entrance of the hospital and soon enough his ride had arrived. He pointed out that the man in the car was his only son and he said to me, “In the future, if you ever have a child, cherish every last moment with him or her because you never know when you won’t see them again.” After he said this, he told me to lean over and give him a hug, and I did exactly what he told me. I was completely torn apart about how kind this man was and how wise he is to this day. As I hugged him, he whispered to my ear, “I will see you again another day either on this world or in the world we have not yet experienced yet with the Lord.” Travon, his father, and the elderly man all drove away, and I turned back trying to keep myself from

A little girl was crying across from us and the boy looked up to me and said, “She’s crying” and sprinted to her. He was standing next to her asking in a tiny voice almost whispering, “Why are you crying? What’s wrong?” The girl continue crying as she pointed to the restroom door as if it answered everything. The boy looked like he understood her, as I stared around looking for answer. The answer arrived, as her dad came out the restroom spreading his arms out for her. Instead of the his little girl running to him, the little boy intersected and hugged him. He was so happy that the dad came back. It was an amazing interaction to see that despite all of his worries regarding his doctor’s visit, the little boy could stop and share someone else's sorrow. Service is something that I always enjoyed because there’s always a cause to help. I want to dedicate my life to helping my community through something I am passionate

Some people have definitely had it worse than other but we all share some type of burden that is carried everywhere we go in life. The same little boy in the photo has been through worse aches than I could ever imagine at his age. Having one of your parents go into cardiac arrest on the eve of Christmas is greatly unfavorable, but it happens. It happened to him. When I found out about the incident the next morning I was heart broken. Not only because that was my uncle, but that was my baby cousins father. A father can never be replaced. He was only 7 years old. I am almost 19 years old and I still couldn’t wrap my mind around that happening to my mother or father. I never though I could see this little boy become sullen, yet he was. I never thought I could see this little boy cry so heavily, yet he was. Ever since the event happened he has been extremely compassionate and always shows affection toward his family members. Always saying “I love you’ and giving hugs and kisses whenever possible. Even though what happened was such a sad event, it taught both him and I something

Little by little, children finish their meals and get ready for naptime. The children dump the remainder of their milk in the same sink where they wash their hands. Slowly children go lie down on their own. One of the TSS’s turns off the lights on that side of the room. Kayla puts on a rest time cd and goes to start cleaning up the kitchen. I ask what kind of music is playing but Kayla is not sure. Alyssa gets blankets for any children who need them. Kayla tells her the children only get their blanket if they are settled down. Seeing the children start to fall asleep I get ready to leave. Saying goodbye to Kayla and Alyssa, thanking them for their time.