Efrain
Two years ago, Efrain’s mom saw our Institute from the highway. While English is not her first language, she translated ortho and pediatrics and thought to herself ‘maybe they could take care of my little boy.’ Her son, Efrain was born with a limb deficiency and doctors in Mexico considered amputation or leg-lengthening procedures, but the family had reservations and little funds to afford either option. When they relocated here recently, they saw a doctor about Efrain’s allergies, and a nurse in that office referred them to OIC.
Efrain’s mom explained to us that she was shocked when they arrived at OIC for the orthopaedic appointment, since she remembered our sign from two years ago, and felt it was meant to be. They met OIC staff who compassionately guided them through the process, before Efrain was examined by Dr. Scaduto. A plan was developed and Efrain was excited about the prospect of shedding his crutch for a state-of-the-art prosthesis. We will permanently rotate his foot backwards so it serves as a knee joint.
OIC is grateful that Efrain and his family have joined our Patient Ambassador Program, and we will be following his story throughout his treatment plan, from pre and post-surgery, through physical therapy. Stay tuned for more to come!
Arturo
Arturo Hernandez’s life was saved by an injury he received playing the sport he loves – soccer.
Like most little boys, Arturo loves to play. But after a soccer game, he went to his mom in extreme pain. Worried, she took him to the local ER where the diagnosis was “nothing broken.” Arturo’s continued discomfort prompted his primary care doctor to refer him to the specialists at OIC.
Still in agony, and within an hour of arriving at OIC, x-rays were reviewed, and the experts at OIC diagnosed Arturo with a tumor. He was sent right away to UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center & Orthopaedic Hospital, where immediate tests showed a cancerous bone mass in his knee.
He’s since undergone chemotherapy and recently had surgery. And thanks to OIC’s generous donors, not only have all of the medical costs not paid by insurance been covered, but Arturo’s transportation needs for chemo, surgery, and follow-up care have also been sponsored by the members of the Charitable Children’s Guild. None of this would be possible without our donors.
Scarlett
From day one we knew Scarlett was special, she was a fighter. She entered the world with her twin brother via emergency c-section at 32 weeks. At 4 months, there were some delays, and at 6 months Scarlett had a brain MRI which revealed Moderate Central Brain atrophy.
We will never know exactly what happened or why. But we’ll always remember the first day Scarlett met Dr. Thompson. She spoke to our daughter, not at our daughter. She learned of Scarlett’s dreams of owning her very own bakery and favorite princess was Aurora. No matter how many activities we had her try, she yearned to just be like all the other kids.
Which brought us to surgery, a big one. A bilateral reconstruction of the pelvis, hips, and knees. There was a lot of pain and tears during the recovery months, but at the last visit, Scarlett looked at us and said… “it was all worth it.” We’ll always think of Dr. Thompson and her wonderful team as part of the family. To this day they are with Scarlett on every step of her journey.
Keri and Rob Ferguson
Adriel is a soccer-loving 14-year-old boy from San Pedro Sula, Honduras, who was diagnosed with Congenital Scoliosis. Due to his complex case there are 2 surgeries being planned, one of which will require a 4-7 day hospital stay. He will remain in LA for 4 months in this first visit, with follow up visits at 6 months, 1 year and 2 years after surgery. Adriel’s days are currently filled with pre-op exams, like CT Scan, MRI, Echocardiogram and Cardiologist exams that will help determined a date for his surgery.
Kosta
Meet our Kosta. He was diagnosed with progressive infantile scoliosis at 17 months, a rare diagnosis of the spine that can, if untreated, be fatal.
When we learned of Kosta’s curving spine we were terrified. Luckily for us, we had the ability to go any distance to pursue world-class care he deserved. We were able to move 5,500 miles from London to Los Angeles so that Kosta could be treated at Orthopaedic Institute for Children with the care of Dr. Scaduto.
Though a surgeon, Dr. Scaduto recommended a non-invasive Mehta casting approach. We are thrilled to report that after just four years of treatment, only a minor curve remains in Kosta’s spine, with the promise of additional improvement as he continues to grow. Our son will stand tall for life thanks to OIC, Dr. Scaduto. This means everything to us.
Sarah and Andrej Jonovic
Tarra’
I just like to do what makes me happy. I like getting A’s on my report cards. I like the feeling when I’m wearing my gymnastics medals. And I like making my moms proud. We’re a close family, and celebrate every victory together. When I hurt my knee and didn’t know if I could ever do gymnastics again, we sat down to make my medical care decision together. When my doctor saw how scared I was, she told me she had once been a gymnast like me. She promised that after I was back at gymnastics, we would go out and turn cartwheels together and celebrate.
• Quality, focused specialty care
• Access for all children
• High patient satisfaction and outcomes
• UCLA Resident Training
• Clinical Fellowships
• Training Allied Health students from Charles Drew University
• Launching minority nurse training program with American University
• Partner with Ortho Medical Magnet High School
• Genetic Research
• Biomechanical Research
• Clinical Research
• Translational Research