NIH Sibling Day Recognizes Patients' Families

Episode # 63
Uploaded: August 3, 2011
Running Time: 02:00

CROWN: From the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, this is CLINICAL CENTER RADIO.

The Clinical Center opened its doors to about a dozen siblings of NIH patients, taking them on a fantastic voyage of science and medicine to help them better understand and cope with the care being provided to their brothers and sisters. The event, NIH's 4th Annual Sibling Day, is a collaborative effort between the Clinical Center, the National Cancer Institute and The Children's Inn. While the Clinical Center offers daily support to family, event director Dr. Lori Wiener of the National Cancer Institute says this event gives extra emphasis to the siblings.

WIENER: To see the kids at the end of the day with smiles on the faces saying, 'I'm a super sibling' and to feel proud of them in their role when usually the attention is geared toward what seemed to be more pressing with the family is special.

CROWN: The day started off at the Inn with some icebreakers. The kids answered questions like "If you could have any super power, which would you pick?" More than one child said that he or she would choose the power to cure. The siblings then toured different Clinical Center departments to get the chance to experience the patient's perspective, taking a ride in a mock MRI scanner. Clinical research nurse Karen Livornese says the siblings' visit to her work area was a nice break from the usual.

LIVORNESE: I usually have one patient at a time instead of a group of people. And usually I work with adults. So it was refreshing to have kids come in and have a different perspective on what the clinic is and how we do things here.

CROWN: At the end of the day, the kids earned Super Sibling awards and a better appreciation for science. Super sibling Arthur Knopfmacher, an 11-year-old from Carroll County, Maryland, says visiting the Clinical Center was educational...but it was also a lot of fun.

KNOPFMACHER: I like it. It's really fun. I suggest if people are sick, come here. This building is fun.

CROWN: From America's Clinical Research Hospital, this has been CLINICAL CENTER RADIO. In Bethesda, Maryland, I'm Ellen Crown, at the National Institutes of Health, an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

Back to Clinical Center Radio