EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State University and Lansing’s Sparrow Health System have formed a partnership to improve hospital care for mid-Michigan children with serious illnesses and injuries.
A pediatric hospitalist – a specially trained physician who practices exclusively in the hospital – and more specialized care for children with cancer will be funded through new grants by the Children’s Miracle Network (CMN).
Each year, approximately 2,600 children are admitted to Sparrow’s Regional Children Center, with nearly 25 percent coming from outside the greater Lansing area, some traveling from as far away as Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
“We’re delighted to partner with MSU on yet another, high-quality medical program,” said Sparrow President Dennis Swan. “Strengthening the relationship between Sparrow and MSU’s outstanding medical schools benefits everyone in the region, especially our youngest residents.”
A $400,000 CMN grant will fund the new pediatric hospitalist program at Sparrow’s Regional Children’s Center. The hospitalist program includes a hospital-based pediatric physician and MSU faculty member charged with employing the most modern, evidence-based protocols to provide the highest quality of pediatric care.
The program also supports the MSU/Sparrow Pediatric Residency Program that trains medical students and future pediatricians from MSU’s College of Human Medicine (CHM) and College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM).
“It’s truly a win-win-win situation,” said Dele Davies, chairperson of MSU’s Department of Pediatrics and Human Development. “MSU wins by partnering with a world-class clinical center. Sparrow wins by providing an even higher quality of care to its patients. And, most importantly, families in mid-Michigan and beyond win by having access to the finest medical care for their children.”
As an essential part of the collaboration, MSU’s medical schools will refer hospitalized children to the program, ensuring consistent care and enhanced educational opportunities.
More than 200 children with cancer are treated each year at Sparrow’s Regional Cancer Center. At any given time, children with cancer number as many as 25 percent of the Center’s inpatients.
A second, $180,000 CMN grant will provide support to the Sparrow Regional Children’s Center to enhance the care of children with cancer. The funds will be used to bring another MSU faculty member to Sparrow’s Regional Children’s Center. MSU faculty physicians play a primary role in administering Sparrow’s pediatric cancer program by installing the latest medical protocols and coordinating patient care.
“These grants are designed to provide the highest quality of care for children and maintain and expand the presence of MSU at Sparrow,” said Stephen Guertin, medical director of Sparrow’s Regional Children’s Center. “By establishing a high-quality, academic pediatric cancer program, we ensure access to the most up-to-date technology and treatment options and along with hospitalists we help train a new generation of highly skilled experts in the treatment of childhood illnesses and injuries.”
For more information about Sparrow’s Regional Children’s Center, call (517) 364-4510.