x
Breaking News
More () »

Healthwatch 16: Baby Heading Home after Year-long Hospital Stay

MAHONING TOWNSHIP — A family in Union County waited a very long time for a moment that happened this week. Their little girl finally got out of the hospit...

MAHONING TOWNSHIP -- A family in Union County waited a very long time for a moment that happened this week.

Their little girl finally got out of the hospital, and got to go home.

Phylicia and Josh Martz of Mifflinburg are like any parents taking home their baby for the first time: excited, scared, looking forward to the future.

But little Winter isn't a newborn. She's almost a year old, and up to this day, had spent her entire life at Geisinger Medical Center near Danville.

Phylicia moved into the Ronald McDonald house nearby.

"I'd walk over in the morning, spend the whole day, take a shower and go to sleep, then do it all over again," she said.

Winter, or Winnie to the doctors and nurses, was born with something called Joubert syndrome, a rare brain disorder. It can cause any number of issues, from a cleft lip and palate to liver or kidney failure.

Dr. Elizabeth Scarlett, a pediatric intensivist at Geisinger, says in Winnie's case, Joubert most seriously affected her breathing.

"All of us? Our brains do it on their own; they tell us to breathe in and out every day and you don't realize it. For Winnie, her brain doesn't always control it the way it should. so She needs a breathing tube and her special trachiostomy to help her know when to take a breath," explained Dr. Scarlett.

The staff at Geisinger has spent a lot of time with Josh and Phylicia, training them to be their own little intensive care unit at home.

Dr. Scarlett said she'd often pop into the headstrong little girl's room get a smile.

"I'm going to miss her terribly. But I'm very excited for her, and Phylicia and Josh are going to do awesome. I just know it."

All morning, staff came by to wish the family well. After nearly a year, they became the Martz' family and many are invited to Winter's first birthday party this month.

Family care coordinator Kelly Hammaker grew close with them.

"They're so young; 20 and 22. And they have a medically needy child they have to care for the rest of their lives. They are very inspiring. I'm inspired by their maturity," Hammaker said.

The prognosis for a baby with Joubert depends on a lot of factors. So far, Winter is doing very well, so it's time to go home into the sunshine, into their own vehicle, all the little firsts so many parents take for granted.

"You do what you need to do for you kids. You don't even think about it. You just do it."

There's an advisory board, as part of the family care program, and officials say because Phylicia was at the hospital so long with her daughter, they've asked her to be on it. She'll now play a role in helping other families who are in for a long-term stay.

She promised to keep us updated on how Winter is doing.

Before You Leave, Check This Out