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August 2008

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HITTING MILESTONES AT A PREEMIE PACE

Jul 14, 2008 02:31pm (EST)

A common theme here at Share Your Story is parents' concern about the development of their premature children. So often, parents are concerned about the milestones these very special children hit, and when they hit them.

When will my baby roll over?

My daughter isn't walking, should I be concerned?

When should I start to worry about my son's speech?

Typically, when do children do _______?

When your child has her own timing, it can often be worrisome to know what's okay and what's not. As a parent, it can be hard to judge when we should wait it out and when it's time to seek intervention.

That's why we are so lucky to have a special guest speaker, Dr. Scott Berns, joining us for a Live Chat about these preemie milestones. Please bring your questions about your child's development. Dr. Berns will take questions and chat with Share parents on:

Tuesday, July 15th
in the Community Center at:
3 pm eastern time
2 pm central time
1 pm mountain time
12 noon pacific time

Dr. Berns joined the March of Dimes national office staff in 2001 and is currently Senior Vice President of Chapter Programs. He serves as Vice Chair of the National Prematurity Campaign. In addition, he oversees the Planning and Community Services Division, which includes program planning and chapter community grants; he also oversees the NICU Family Support Project, a key component of the Prematurity Campaign, which provides information and comfort to NICU families. Dr. Berns also oversees March of Dimes Mom & Baby Mobile Health Center initiatives. He also served for five years, on the Board of the Rhode Island Chapter of the March of Dimes.

Dr. Berns is a Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. He serves as Chairman of the Board of the Progeria (pro-jeer-eee-ah) Research Foundation. In addition, Dr. Berns is on the Executive Committee of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Perinatal Pediatrics. In 2001, he completed a one-year White House Fellowship where he served as a Special Assistant to the U.S. Secretary of Transportation.

Prior to joining the March of Dimes, he served as Medical Director of Pediatric Trauma at Hasbro Children's Hospital in Providence, RI from 1993 to 2000. Dr. Berns served on the Executive Board of the Rhode Island Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics and as Chairman of its Injury Prevention Committee. He founded and was co-director of the Injury Prevention Center at Rhode Island Hospital. In addition, he was a founding member of the Committee for Pediatric Advocacy at Hasbro Children's Hospital.

He was founding Director of the statewide "Rhode Island Buckle-Up Hotline," a community-based child passenger safety restraint program. He also founded and was Chairman of the "Providence Safe Communities Partnership." In addition, Dr. Berns served as the sole pediatric representative on a national expert panel that created and implemented the Emergency Team Coordination Course.

He has received the Willis A. Wingert Award for Excellence in Research in Pediatric Emergency Medicine, a National Public Service Award from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a National Service Award from the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, and the Becky Hatfield Family Support Award from the National Perinatal Association.

Dr. Berns received a BA magna cum laude and a MD degree from Boston University. He completed his residency in pediatrics at Rhode Island Hospital and completed a fellowship in pediatric emergency medicine at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. Dr. Berns earned a MPH with a concentration in health policy and management at Harvard School of Public Health.

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It is a wonderful opportunity for Share parents to get answers - we hope you'll join us for this special event.

See you there! Darcy

Posted by Darcy Milder | Comments: (0) | Permalink

SHARE HITS A MILESTONE!

Jun 25, 2008 11:32am (EST)

I've been around since Share Your Story was just a baby - back in 2004 we started as a message board. It worked a lot like the Parent-to-Parent section works now. There was also a Story section, a lot like our current collection of Short Stories. Share didn't have blogging technology, a Community Center or a place to learn how to Get Involved and give back.

Today Share Your Story membership hit 25,000!

It now takes a team of volunteers to help maintain the site. What used to be managed with a part-time consultant and 5 - 6 volunteers in a small, intimate community now has two dedicated Share Your Story staff members, a small peripheral team of professional staff called on to answer medical questions and an amazing cast of 22 volunteers who manage and maintain the site to make sure no story goes unheard, and no question is left unanswered.

That is the thing that makes me most proud... that every story is heard here. No question goes unanswered. This volunteer crew of 22 dedicated Share Your Story volunteers has made this online community something to be proud of!

Each and every member who reaches out, shares his story, or responds to another parent has helped Share grow into our thriving community! YOU, by making your voice heard, have shared the story about a baby you love and touched others. By giving words of support, you were a beacon on someone's dark day. By saying, "I understand" you were a voice of empathy. By telling another parent, "There is hope" you were a light at the end of her tunnel.

What started as a small, flickering flame has ignited the path for so many families to find hope and healing right here in this community over the past almost 4 years.

And it just takes one voice.

When I first came to Share in September of 2004, it took awhile for me to create an account. I lurked (like some of you are doing right now!) to see what the site was all about. When I finally came forth and told my NICU story, I got a single response.

One voice.

And that voice knew how I was feeling. She understood my journey. And that single voice was the biggest leap in healing from my NICU journey that I had experienced.

To each member, thank you for being a part of Share Your Story. You never know when you will be that one voice for someone who needs it.

If you'd like to volunteer on the site, we'd love to hear from you. You can email me (dmilder@marchofdimes.com) or our Community host, James (jsoohoo@marchofdimes.com) or send an instant message to volunteer chair, Denise Rock (weerock), when she is online.

Thanks, Share!

Warmly, Darcy

June08 SHARE 25k

Posted by Darcy Milder | Comments: (8) | Permalink

TEN MORE YEARS...

Jun 19, 2008 09:33am (EST)

"The March of Dimes has extended its Prematurity Campaign by 10 years to 2020 and will work to address preterm birth globally."

In an article released after the recent Surgeon General's conference addressing preterm birth, the March of Dimes extended its commitment to fight preterm birth. You can read the entire article, including quotes from MOD president, Dr. Howse, here.

Are you pregnant? Are you looking for a support thread to share concerns? Several of our moms have teamed up for a warm discussion supporting high risk pregnancy, bedrest or anxiety after a previous high-risk pregnancy. Please visit the thread. Many thanks to community volunteer, Donnavie, who is keeping track of due dates and supporting our members. Thanks Donnavie!

Who used to drive a Colt? Whose proposal is related to Steak 'n' Shake? Who was a gymnast and who wasn't valedictorian? If you haven't read this hilarious thread about your Share friends, stop by for a giggle! Many thanks to Jaclyn for coordinating this fun community pit stop.

Come and meet our newest Shining Star - Elizabeth. Elizabeth is a dedicated March of Dimes volunteer. She will receive an Hour Power watch in recognition of her volunteer efforts and dedication to the mission. Way to go, Elizabeth! You rock!

Summer is upon us - hope the Share community has a safe, heathy and fun summer break!

Posted by Darcy Milder | Comments: (5) | Permalink

SURGEON GENERAL’S CONFERENCE ON PREVENTION OF PRETERM BIRTH

May 14, 2008 06:53pm (EST)

June 16-17, 2008 … Rockville, Maryland “Preterm birth remains one of the most complicated and difficult to address research and public health issues in obstetrics and pediatrics...This conference will help set an agenda that will serve as a comprehensive blueprint to speed the identification of the causes of, risk factors for, and treatment of preterm labor and delivery.” Acting Surgeon General Steven K. Galson, M.D., M.P.H, RADM, USPHS

Over the course of three years, millions of active March of Dimes volunteers and staff across the nation worked with Representatives and Senators from both sides of the aisle to enact the PREEMIE Act (P.L. 109-450). The PREEMIE Act calls for expanding federal support for research, education and pilot testing strategies to prevent preterm birth. A key provision of PREEMIE is the convening of a Surgeon General's conference on preterm birth to create a public-private agenda to accelerate the development of new strategies for preventing preterm birth and for treating babies who are born too soon.

You can read the full article here.

We here at Share Your Story are so excited to see the hard work of March of Dimes, its employees and especially its volunteers (that's you!!) result in such an important conference. More information and registration can be found at the link above.

Posted by Darcy Milder | Comments: (2) | Permalink

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