Sacred Heart Medical Center has been a part of the Spokane community for over one hundred years. According to the Sacred Heart Medical Center website, Mother Joseph of the Sacred Heart designed and supervised the construction of the area’s first hospital as a refuge for the “homeless, poor and dying” in 1886 . It 
was located along the Spokane river where the convention center now stands. In 1910, it was moved to its current location on the South Hill and could service 1000 patients. The campus has since grown to include The Heart Institute, The Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital, and the Women's Health Center and Surgery Center.
Specifically, the Children’s Hospital includes “over 120 specialists, representing 28 pediatric subspecialties treating both medical and surgical needs” according to the Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital website.
The hospital campus has even woven itself into the culture and story of Spokane. Most people that have lived in Spokane for any amount of time or have been to the hospital know the story of the house that sits in the middle of the hospital campus. The former owner refused to sell the house to the hospital when it was trying to expand so the hospital expanded completely around it. Later when the descendants of the owner tried to sell to the hospital, the hospital refused to buy it.
Sacred Heart Children's Hospital and the Community
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center is a very visible and important piece of the Spokane community. Despite the immense size of the hospital that can make it seem daunting, the care is exceptional. For those who have not received services there, it could seem cold and impersonal, but in my personal experience, that is not the case. Everyone that I met, from the doctors and nurses to the cleaning staff, seemed to really care about the patients.
The Children’s Hospital has made a great effort to make the atmosphere friendly to children. They have brightly colored hallw
ays and waiting areas. The skywalks between different sections of the hospital are made beautiful and interesting. Not only can a hospital stay be frightening to a child, but to their parents as well. From the point of view of the parents, these touches may at first seem only aimed at their children, but if the children are more comfortable, so will their parents be. It is not easy for a parent to take their child to a hospital, especially if a surgery is involved. The touches that make the children feel more at ease, also help to ease the minds and hearts of the parents.
As you go through the hospital, you will also find certain touches that make you realize that the staff at the hospital truly care for their patients. In the NICU, they have a tree on the wall. At first glance and from a distance, you cannot see what makes up the branches of the tree. Upon close
r inspection, it can be seen that the branches are made up of pictures of the children that spent time in the NICU. It seems to be important to the staff to see how the children have thrived since leaving the NICU. When I asked one nurse if it was difficult working in the NICU, she told me it was all worth it when she was able to send babies home with their parents. It is the doctors and nurses and the rest of the staff that make it a community that really cares about its patients.
Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital and My Family
When our children were born four weeks early, we realized that they would have to spend some time in the NICU and we were thankful that we had access to such a highly regarded NICU within our community. Ultimately, our daughter spent four days there before release and our son was there for a full month after his birth. Again and again, we were impressed with the care that they received. All of the nurses who cared for the children were exceptional and we got to know some of them quite well. One certain nurse even requested the care of our children whenever she was on duty. We received daily phone calls with progress reports on how the babies were doing and all of our questions were always answered knowledgeably. We could go home and sleep well at night knowing that our children were well cared for.
As our children were being released from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), we were offered an option of rooming in for a night. R
ooming in allows the parents of children that have been in the NICU to stay in a room within the NICU facility. The parents have the responsibility of caring for their children while having the nursing staff from the NICU available if they have questions or concerns during the night. It can allow a smoother transition between the time spent in the NICU and taking the baby home, especially for first time parents.
Even though the situation was not ideal, having your children in the NICU never is, we could not have been happier with the care and services that they received. The goal of the staff was not to just take care of the babies, but to help you to learn how to take care of your baby. They also seemed to genuinely care about the parents as well and attempted to make you comfortable as the situation allowed. We felt very blessed that we live in a community that has a hospital with such wonderful staff that takes such exceptional care of the children that need a little extra help as they start their lives.
