One Family's Story

Our experience with MGfC IBD clinic has been very much like a stone hitting the water. From the center where the stone hits, circles form and ripple outward. In the same way, our children’s physician, Dr. Christopher Moran is the center of our kid’s care. From there, the ripples that emerged were the opportunity to collaborate with other families, physicians, staff and clinicians to enhance the care of children with IBD.

After our two children were diagnosed with IBD, Dr. Moran encouraged us to seek out opportunities to become involved with the greater pediatric IBD community and invited us to participate. This led to us joining the MGfC IBD Parent /Patient Advisory Group as well as, attending the Improve Care Now (ICN) community conference in Chicago. ICN is an international organization that takes a collaborative approach where parents, patients, clinicians and researchers all work together to improve the quality and delivery of care for children and youth diagnosed with IBD. Through our participation in the MGfC IBD Clinic’s Parent /Patient Advisory Group as well as ICN, we have had the opportunity to develop friendships, gain support and leverage what we learned to enhance the experience and support for other MGfC IBD families. Our Parent / Patient Mentor program is the direct result of this collaboration. After months and months of hard work, it’s about to reach fruition. Our goal is to provide peer support to families.

Care at MGfC IBD clinic extends far beyond the exam room wall. It may start there but the “circle of care” is made up of a community of committed, caring, physicians, clinicians, staff and parents who are all working together to meet the challenges of navigating IBD for their patients and families. It has enhanced our experience and we are grateful for the friendships, support and the opportunity to “give back”.