Re: educating doctors - very long

[Guest guest]

Nice Job, Amy! You are inspiring me to build back better communications with my ped...he is so clueless on all of this.

amy_coppedge <amy_coppedge@...> wrote: i can't remember who posted a while back asking about educating doctors and whether or not anyone had ever brought their child's "headsicle" to show their doctor. however, i do have a good story to share. my daughter, emma's pediatrician gave me the usual "it will round out on its own" line at her 3 month, 4 month, and 6 month visits. without any referrals from the pediatrician, i went ahead and took emma to see a pediatric neurosurgeon, then took her for a free evaluation at CT, and then took her to see a craniofacial surgeon. she was banded on May 6 and we are already seeing some improvement. after emma received her band, i wrote the following letter to our pediatrician: "May 14, 2002 Dr. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Road PediatricsXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXRaleigh, NC XXXXXDear Dr. XXXXXXX,I wanted to send you a quick note to let you know that we have decided to pursue treatment for Emma's plagiocephaly with the Dynamic Orthotic Cranioplasty band. We are continuing with physical therapy at HealthSouth for her torticollis, as well as the craniosacral therapy for which you referred her. We are also taking her to see a woman who is an occupational therapist with training in visceral manipulation and craniosacral therapy. In addition to all this, we are doing neck stretches four to five times daily and have been placing her to sleep on her left side since she was about three and a half months old. We took her to see a craniofacial surgeon who rated her plagiocephaly as severe and recommended the DOC band. Her cranial vault asymmetry was 18 mm, and her cranial base asymmetry was 11 mm. She received her DOC band on May 6th and has adjusted very well. We are hopeful that we will see great results.I wanted to keep you up to speed on everything we are doing and also ask that if you have any patients in the future who are diagnosed with congenital torticollis, that you please mention to them the importance of altering their child's sleeping position. From the little research that I have had time to do, it appears that plagiocephaly often is the result of torticollis and back sleeping. I'm not sure if aggressive repositioning of Emma as soon as she was diagnosed with the torticollis would have prevented the plagio, but it's quite possible it could have lessened the severity. Unfortunately, I didn't know this until her plagio was already severe, and she was able to roll around on her own. So, I am just asking that this bit of information be shared so that perhaps others won't have to go through what we are going through.Emma continues to delight us with her developing skills and personality. She is quite the happy little girl!We look forward to seeing you at Emma's nine-month check up on June 26th.Sincerely,Amy Coppedge"i included a number of articles from peer-reviewed journals that spoke to the high occurrence of plagio in babies with tort (many that i found through the bookmarks section). anyway, i found out yesterday that our pediatrician called CT and asked that someone come to his office to talk to him, his colleagues, and staff about plagio and what they can tell parents to do to prevent it. (also, i'm sure, to learn more about the DOC band.) i don't know if this is common practice, as emma is my first child, but, in addition to the doctor visiting us, his office sent a nurse to the hospital after emma was born to talk to us about taking care of her. it's great to think that maybe these nurses will now tell new parents about repositioning. anyway, i think this is so great and it reinforces my high opinion of him and the fact that even the doctors need to be made aware and educated. don't be afraid to pass on your new found knowledge to people in the medical field. they may not respond as positively as our pediatrician, but you never know. amymom to emma (DOC band 5/6/01)For more plagio info

[Guest guest]

Hi Amy

That's great news. I am so pleased that your ped has took notice of your

letter. Great job getting the word out.

Best wishes

Kerry - Marcus (3) Dylan in second DOCband (16months)

Calgary,AB

>From: " amy_coppedge " <amy_coppedge@...>

>Reply-Plagiocephaly

>Plagiocephaly

>Subject: educating doctors - very long

>Date: Sat, 15 Jun 2002 16:00:00 -0000

>

>i can't remember who posted a while back asking about educating

>doctors and whether or not anyone had ever brought their child's

> " headsicle " to show their doctor. however, i do have a good story to

>share. my daughter, emma's pediatrician gave me the usual " it will

>round out on its own " line at her 3 month, 4 month, and 6 month

>visits. without any referrals from the pediatrician, i went ahead and

>took emma to see a pediatric neurosurgeon, then took her for a free

>evaluation at CT, and then took her to see a craniofacial surgeon. she

>was banded on May 6 and we are already seeing some improvement. after

>emma received her band, i wrote the following letter to our

>pediatrician:

>

> " May 14, 2002

>

>

>Dr. XXXXXXXX

>XXXXXXX Road Pediatrics

>XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

>Raleigh, NC XXXXX

>

>

>Dear Dr. XXXXXXX,

>

>I wanted to send you a quick note to let you know that we have decided

>to pursue treatment for Emma's plagiocephaly with the Dynamic Orthotic

>Cranioplasty band. We are continuing with physical therapy at

>HealthSouth for her torticollis, as well as the craniosacral therapy

>for which you referred her. We are also taking her to see a woman who

>is an occupational therapist with training in visceral manipulation

>and craniosacral therapy. In addition to all this, we are doing neck

>stretches four to five times daily and have been placing her to sleep

>on her left side since she was about three and a half months old. We

>took her to see a craniofacial surgeon who rated her plagiocephaly as

>severe and recommended the DOC band. Her cranial vault asymmetry was

>18 mm, and her cranial base asymmetry was 11 mm. She received her DOC

>band on May 6th and has adjusted very well. We are hopeful that we

>will see great results.

>

>I wanted to keep you up to speed on everything we are doing and also

>ask that if you have any patients in the future who are diagnosed with

>congenital torticollis, that you please mention to them the importance

>of altering their child's sleeping position. From the little research

>that I have had time to do, it appears that plagiocephaly often is the

>result of torticollis and back sleeping. I'm not sure if aggressive

>repositioning of Emma as soon as she was diagnosed with the

>torticollis would have prevented the plagio, but it's quite possible

>it could have lessened the severity. Unfortunately, I didn't know this

>until her plagio was already severe, and she was able to roll around

>on her own. So, I am just asking that this bit of information be

>shared so that perhaps others won't have to go through what we are

>going through.

>

>Emma continues to delight us with her developing skills and

>personality. She is quite the happy little girl!

>

>We look forward to seeing you at Emma's nine-month check up on June

>26th.

>

>Sincerely,

>

>Amy Coppedge "

>

>i included a number of articles from peer-reviewed journals that spoke

>to the high occurrence of plagio in babies with tort (many that i

>found through the bookmarks section). anyway, i found out yesterday

>that our pediatrician called CT and asked that someone come to his

>office to talk to him, his colleagues, and staff about plagio and what

>they can tell parents to do to prevent it. (also, i'm sure, to learn

>more about the DOC band.) i don't know if this is common practice, as

>emma is my first child, but, in addition to the doctor visiting us,

>his office sent a nurse to the hospital after emma was born to talk to

>us about taking care of her. it's great to think that maybe these

>nurses will now tell new parents about repositioning. anyway, i think

>this is so great and it reinforces my high opinion of him and the fact

>that even the doctors need to be made aware and educated. don't be

>afraid to pass on your new found knowledge to people in the medical

>field. they may not respond as positively as our pediatrician, but you

>never know.

>

>amy

>mom to emma (DOC band 5/6/01)

>

_________________________________________________________________

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[Guest guest]

Dear Amy,

I am the one that wrote the original message. Thank you so much for

sharing your letter. I intend to write some very long letters to our

ped. and neuro. I really appreciated your professional and positive

approach. I think in the end this will help other parents more than the

" I told you so " approach to our docs.

Thanks again for a great letter.

Ellen (Mom to Amy H.)

New Jersey

On Sat, 15 Jun 2002 16:00:00 -0000 " amy_coppedge "

<amy_coppedge@...> writes:

> i can't remember who posted a while back asking about educating

> doctors and whether or not anyone had ever brought their child's

> " headsicle " to show their doctor. however, i do have a good story to

>

> share. my daughter, emma's pediatrician gave me the usual " it will

> round out on its own " line at her 3 month, 4 month, and 6 month

> visits. without any referrals from the pediatrician, i went ahead

> and

> took emma to see a pediatric neurosurgeon, then took her for a free

> evaluation at CT, and then took her to see a craniofacial surgeon.

> she

> was banded on May 6 and we are already seeing some improvement.

> after

> emma received her band, i wrote the following letter to our

> pediatrician:

>

>

> " May 14, 2002

>

>

> Dr. XXXXXXXX

> XXXXXXX Road Pediatrics

> XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

> Raleigh, NC XXXXX

>

>

> Dear Dr. XXXXXXX,

>

> I wanted to send you a quick note to let you know that we have

> decided

> to pursue treatment for Emma's plagiocephaly with the Dynamic

> Orthotic

> Cranioplasty band. We are continuing with physical therapy at

> HealthSouth for her torticollis, as well as the craniosacral therapy

>

> for which you referred her. We are also taking her to see a woman

> who

> is an occupational therapist with training in visceral manipulation

> and craniosacral therapy. In addition to all this, we are doing neck

>

> stretches four to five times daily and have been placing her to

> sleep

> on her left side since she was about three and a half months old. We

>

> took her to see a craniofacial surgeon who rated her plagiocephaly

> as

> severe and recommended the DOC band. Her cranial vault asymmetry was

>

> 18 mm, and her cranial base asymmetry was 11 mm. She received her

> DOC

> band on May 6th and has adjusted very well. We are hopeful that we

> will see great results.

>

> I wanted to keep you up to speed on everything we are doing and also

>

> ask that if you have any patients in the future who are diagnosed

> with

> congenital torticollis, that you please mention to them the

> importance

> of altering their child's sleeping position. From the little

> research

> that I have had time to do, it appears that plagiocephaly often is

> the

> result of torticollis and back sleeping. I'm not sure if aggressive

> repositioning of Emma as soon as she was diagnosed with the

> torticollis would have prevented the plagio, but it's quite possible

>

> it could have lessened the severity. Unfortunately, I didn't know

> this

> until her plagio was already severe, and she was able to roll around

>

> on her own. So, I am just asking that this bit of information be

> shared so that perhaps others won't have to go through what we are

> going through.

>

> Emma continues to delight us with her developing skills and

> personality. She is quite the happy little girl!

>

> We look forward to seeing you at Emma's nine-month check up on June

> 26th.

>

> Sincerely,

>

> Amy Coppedge "

>

> i included a number of articles from peer-reviewed journals that

> spoke

> to the high occurrence of plagio in babies with tort (many that i

> found through the bookmarks section). anyway, i found out yesterday

> that our pediatrician called CT and asked that someone come to his

> office to talk to him, his colleagues, and staff about plagio and

> what

> they can tell parents to do to prevent it. (also, i'm sure, to learn

>

> more about the DOC band.) i don't know if this is common practice,

> as

> emma is my first child, but, in addition to the doctor visiting us,

> his office sent a nurse to the hospital after emma was born to talk

> to

> us about taking care of her. it's great to think that maybe these

> nurses will now tell new parents about repositioning. anyway, i

> think

> this is so great and it reinforces my high opinion of him and the

> fact

> that even the doctors need to be made aware and educated. don't be

> afraid to pass on your new found knowledge to people in the medical

> field. they may not respond as positively as our pediatrician, but

> you

> never know.

>

> amy

> mom to emma (DOC band 5/6/01)

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

What specifically is a "headsicle"? I guess I'm in the early stages

of all of this.

ann/

NJ

amy_coppedge wrote:

i can't remember who posted a while back

asking about educating

doctors and whether or not anyone had ever brought their child's

"headsicle" to show their doctor. however, i do have a good story

to

share. my daughter, emma's pediatrician gave me the usual "it will

round out on its own" line at her 3 month, 4 month, and 6 month

visits. without any referrals from the pediatrician, i went ahead

and

took emma to see a pediatric neurosurgeon, then took her for a

free

evaluation at CT, and then took her to see a craniofacial surgeon.

she

was banded on May 6 and we are already seeing some improvement.

after

emma received her band, i wrote the following letter to our

pediatrician:

"May 14, 2002

Dr. XXXXXXXX

XXXXXXX Road Pediatrics

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Raleigh, NC XXXXX

Dear Dr. XXXXXXX,

I wanted to send you a quick note to let you know that we have decided

to pursue treatment for Emma's plagiocephaly with the Dynamic Orthotic

Cranioplasty band. We are continuing with physical therapy at

HealthSouth for her torticollis, as well as the craniosacral therapy

for which you referred her. We are also taking her to see a woman

who

is an occupational therapist with training in visceral manipulation

and craniosacral therapy. In addition to all this, we are doing

neck

stretches four to five times daily and have been placing her to

sleep

on her left side since she was about three and a half months old.

We

took her to see a craniofacial surgeon who rated her plagiocephaly

as

severe and recommended the DOC band. Her cranial vault asymmetry

was

18 mm, and her cranial base asymmetry was 11 mm. She received her

DOC

band on May 6th and has adjusted very well. We are hopeful that

we

will see great results.

I wanted to keep you up to speed on everything we are doing and

also

ask that if you have any patients in the future who are diagnosed

with

congenital torticollis, that you please mention to them the importance

of altering their child's sleeping position. From the little research

that I have had time to do, it appears that plagiocephaly often

is the

result of torticollis and back sleeping. I'm not sure if aggressive

repositioning of Emma as soon as she was diagnosed with the

torticollis would have prevented the plagio, but it's quite possible

it could have lessened the severity. Unfortunately, I didn't know

this

until her plagio was already severe, and she was able to roll around

on her own. So, I am just asking that this bit of information be

shared so that perhaps others won't have to go through what we

are

going through.

Emma continues to delight us with her developing skills and

personality. She is quite the happy little girl!

We look forward to seeing you at Emma's nine-month check up on June

26th.

Sincerely,

Amy Coppedge"

i included a number of articles from peer-reviewed journals that

spoke

to the high occurrence of plagio in babies with tort (many that

i

found through the bookmarks section). anyway, i found out yesterday

that our pediatrician called CT and asked that someone come to

his

office to talk to him, his colleagues, and staff about plagio and

what

they can tell parents to do to prevent it. (also, i'm sure, to

learn

more about the DOC band.) i don't know if this is common practice,

as

emma is my first child, but, in addition to the doctor visiting

us,

his office sent a nurse to the hospital after emma was born to

talk to

us about taking care of her. it's great to think that maybe these

nurses will now tell new parents about repositioning. anyway, i

think

this is so great and it reinforces my high opinion of him and the

fact

that even the doctors need to be made aware and educated. don't

be

afraid to pass on your new found knowledge to people in the medical

field. they may not respond as positively as our pediatrician,

but you

never know.

amy

mom to emma (DOC band 5/6/01)

For more plagio info