RCH Becomes ‘Home Away from Home’

Our daughter was diagnosed with hip dysplasia shortly after birth in 2019.

As first-time parents, my partner David and I had no idea where this journey would take us. We were living in country Victoria and travelling on a regular basis to The Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne for various appointments. The RCH soon became our little home away from home.

From the beautiful staff, most importantly Prue, who guided us every step of the way, to the parents retreat where we could rest and get a coffee and our baby could have a quiet space to be fed, or to nap, and where you could so easily forget why you were even at the hospital, to begin with. All of it combined made our journey just that little bit easier to navigate.

And finally today, February 2nd, 2021, our daughter Alessandra, has healthy hips! So no more brace, no more appointments until she is 4! What a journey! So many tears have been shed, but none more than today, mostly because the RCH has gone above and beyond to look after us and our baby and has made a challenging time in our lives so much easier to navigate.

So thank you, to everyone at the RCH – what you have done for our family will never be forgotten. We know how lucky we are. So many children are at the RCH for far more serious conditions. But no matter the reason you are there, big or small, the level of care and compassion is exactly the same. So again, thank you.