Casi’s story: Family-focused cleft lip and palate care

“I want to thank you all for the wonderful work that you do. I could never have imagined (one year ago) that Casi’s results would be this amazing.

I found out at 26 weeks that my child would be born with a cleft lip and palate. The perinatology department (provides care for health concerns before birth) at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital explained that there would be a series of surgeries necessary and advised me to contact the Center for Craniofacial Care and Dr. Jennifer Rhodes.

When I called, the first person that I was privileged to speak with was Ruth Trivelpiece. Her tone was very warm as she explained that we would become like a family over the years to come. She asked that I limit my research on this condition to the CHoR website and its links as opposed to random searches on the internet.

A few weeks later my husband and I went in for a visit where we were able to sit with Ruth and Dr. Rhodes. We were able to see actual before and after pictures of Dr. Rhodes' patients, go over the feeding techniques and learn of the different stages of repair. My husband and I went into this meeting with what seemed like a million questions, but before we had a chance to ask any of them they were answered. One of the things that we both appreciated most was Dr. Rhodes (and Ruth) explaining in a way that we understood. Some doctors have a tendency to speak in medical terms and information gets lost in translation. That has never been an issue here.

We were visited by Ruth in the hospital when our baby girl was born because she wanted to supply the proper bottles for feeding. The rest is history. This has been a long year, yet so short. Our Casi is healthy, happy and beautiful and I can’t thank Dr. Rhodes and her team enough.”  

Thanks and Best Regards,
Mary Pitts