Advocacy Program Helps Bay Area Children Make Transition From Hospital to School
The San Jose Mercury News on Monday examined a program intended to help "medically fragile" children in the San Francisco Bay Area and surrounding communities make the transition from hospitals to schools. The Hospital Educational Advocacy Liaisons, or HEAL, program was created at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford University in May to help children succeed in school despite obstacles created by health problems. Children in the program have undergone radiation and chemotherapy treatments for cancer or are learning to live with genetic diseases or chronic illnesses. For many, the physical changes and psychological challenges resulting from illness make it difficult to succeed in school, according to the Mercury News. HEAL seeks to educate parents and school officials about what services the children need while in school and what services they are entitled to receive by law. About 150 children participate in the program (Goldston, San Jose Mercury News, 1/12).
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