Childhood leukemia patient returns to the hospital as a staff member
Heather Kays was a 12-year-old girl newly diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia when she was a cancer patient at Norton Children’s Hospital. Now, as a 23-year-old healthy woman, she is on the staff as a patient care associate in the hospital’s Addison Jo Blair Cancer Care Center. As she cares for children undergoing treatment with…
Read Full StoryA Bowling Green girl is ready for kindergarten after complex heart care
Kara Ainsley is a registered nurse at a rehabilitation facility in Bowling Green, Kentucky. She can tell when things are going smoothly and when they aren’t. After a relatively uneventful pregnancy, she labored the morning of May 31, 2015, at the local hospital. If there was anything unusual about her labor it was the duration…
Read Full Story2 years after emergency heart surgery when he was born, Trent is happy and energetic
Trent Robinson was rushed to Norton Children’s Hospital by ambulance from a nearby hospital just after being delivered by emergency cesarean section in March 2018. “He was turning blue. I got to see him for a split second as I was lying on the operating table,” said Brooklynn Robinson, Trent’s mother. Trent was diagnosed with…
Read Full StoryAs an adult with congenital heart disease, a 27-year-old is giving back
To look at Samantha Stallings today as an active, working adult, you would never know that she’s been fighting for her health all 27 of her years. Her journey with Norton Children’s began the day she was born six weeks premature and transferred to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Norton Children’s Hospital. Now…
Read Full StoryJust days old, Ace Graham was diagnosed with a life-threatening heart condition
Ace Graham soon will celebrate his second birthday, an accomplishment that most families take for granted. But for his parents, T.J. and Allie Graham, and his extended family, each day is a blessing, and nothing is taken for granted. Ace was born March 22, 2018, and everything appeared fine. He was healthy, and within a…
Read Full StorySpine surgery using 3D technology saves Indiana girl from paralysis
An innovative surgery using 3D printing technology is alleviating pain for some of the most critical and complicated cases. A 13-year-old girl from Clarksville, Indiana is one of those cases. Haley Kessinger was born with achondroplasia, a common form of dwarfism, as well as a deformity in her spine. As Haley got older, the curve…
Read Full StoryHeart team helps firefighter ‘feel 100%’ after surgery for Ebstein anomaly
Luke Coward was born with Ebstein anomaly of the tricuspid valve, an extremely rare congenital heart condition that accounts for less than 1% of all congenital heart conditions. From the time he was diagnosed at 18 months old, he never felt limited by the condition. He was an active, healthy, happy child who just happened…
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Barbara Bernard – Outstanding Volunteer Fundraiser
Barbara Bernard is a regular volunteer in the child life and expressive therapies department at Norton Children’s Hospital, helping with kids’ playtime, supporting parents and helping others any way she can. She has been an active volunteer with Norton Children’s Hospital for over 11 years. “Over her decade of service, Barbara has donated thousands of…
Read Full StoryTeen who survived cancer twice still gives back
As a two-time cancer survivor, Aiden Johnson is no stranger to the hospital. Over the course of 6 1/2 years, he spent countless days as a patient in the Addison Jo Blair Cancer Care Center at Norton Children’s Hospital. This summer he returned to the cancer unit, but in a very different role. He served…
Read Full Story2-year-old cancer survivor from China finds a new home in Louisville
Since she was a child, Jenni Haynes wanted to adopt a baby girl from overseas. That dream recently became reality. In April 2018, Jenni and her husband adopted a 2-year-old girl from China who had survived cancer as an infant. The girl’s right arm was amputated when she was 5 months old after she was…
Read Full StorySisters’ bond helps family manage epilepsy
Seven years ago, my younger sister, Samantha, was diagnosed with epilepsy. Who would have thought that fluttering her eyes was actually a seizure? Sam didn’t seem herself, and so our pediatrician ordered a sleep-deprived electroencephalogram (EEG). This is a test that looks at how the brain works when it’s tired. At first, Sam thought it…
Read Full StoryHalloween fun at Norton Children’s
Follow Norton Children’s on social media Facebook Twitter Instagram Halloween is a fun time at Norton Children’s locations throughout Louisville and Southern Indiana. Patients and staff at Norton Children’s facilities dressed up, trick-or-treated and celebrated the fun fall holiday together. Check out all of our Halloween fun below! NCH staff costume FB album: NWCH staff…
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