(gentle piano music)
- [Becca] We found out I was pregnant
and we were just elated.
We just had our standard 20-week anatomy scan.
- We were super excited cause we had just found out
that we were having a boy.
- And they pulled us into a room and she said,
"There's something wrong with your baby's heart."
And I think for us, it went from,
you know, your absolute highest high
to probably the lowest we've ever been.
In a matter of 10 minutes our world changed.
The pediatric cardiologist confirmed hypoplastic left heart,
which meant his left side
of his heart wasn't fully developed.
They went through our options.
They give us all those big, scary statistics.
- I didn't know how it would affect him,
or even if we would make it through the pregnancy, so.
- They said, "If you want a second opinion
"or you just want to explore other options,
"I can refer you to a colleague
"of mine at the Colorado Fetal Care Center,
"who's a fetal cardiologist."
I emailed Dr. Bettina Cuneo
and in 12 minutes she emailed me back.
And was so hopeful and so welcoming,
so we set up appointments with them
and I think the second we walked in those doors,
we knew that this was the place we had to be.
- [Narrator] The Colorado Fetal Care Center
and the Heart Institute at Children's Hospital Colorado
provide the best choice for care
for both mother and baby before, during, and after birth.
As a national leader in diagnosis, treatment,
and successful outcomes,
Children's Hospital Colorado leads the way
for treating all types of congenital heart defects.
- I think one of the most important things
that parents need to understand,
after they've been given the diagnosis
of a complex heart defect,
you wanna make sure you are going to a place
that is gonna take care of every part of your child's care.
And that's what we have at Children's Hospital Colorado,
is that we have one
of the best children's hospitals in the country
and one of the best cardiac programs in the country.
- [Narrator] Your entire Colorado Fetal Care Center
experience is designed to deliver better care
and outcomes for your baby.
From your very first visit,
you care team will be here for you
and accessible whenever you need them.
- When we met Dr. Cuneo,
I think the first thing she did was give Becca a big hug.
It was really more hopeful talking to her.
- These parents come to us with questions,
making probably the most important decisions of their life
and they need to have someone they can trust.
- We did a fetal echocardiogram, ultrasound,
and then we went back
and sat with Dr. Cuneo and Dr. Jaggers,
who confirmed the diagnosis
and just kinda went through the treatment options.
I think by the end of that meeting,
we knew that that's where we needed to be for him.
- [Narrator] Our hospital is built
to provide the absolute best care possible
for your labor, delivery, and postnatal and neonatal care.
And it's all in one place.
Your highly specialized care team includes dedicated nurses
who are certified in fetal monitoring.
And it's designed to make the experience easier and better
for you and your baby.
From prenatal evaluation and treatment to labor and delivery
to the most advanced cardiac intensive care unit
in the region.
We have the most comprehensive continuum of care,
all under one roof.
- It's really important for parents to understand
that if their baby has a complex heart problem,
that they should really be looking at a place
that their baby can be delivered in
so that the baby doesn't have to be transferred
to another facility.
Cause we do know that that's very important,
as far as the outcomes.
We really try to have a multi-disciplinary approach.
You're not just getting a surgeon,
you're getting a while team.
- We have the MFM section within the children's hospital,
so that facilitates in bringing together members
from different teams who will be in the delivery room,
working together for the baby.
- The father, who used to try and run between
and didn't know exactly who he should be with,
can just be at one place.
That allows more time for bonding,
which is so important
in those crucial first hours after birth.
The mother can go down just one flight of stairs
and be with her baby
and then go back upstairs to be cared for herself.
- [Dr. Jaggers] And then they don't have to go anywhere
for their surgery.
The baby can go down the hall
for their surgery in the next few days.
- [Narrator] With the only dedicated
cardiac intensive care unit in the whole region,
The Heart Institute provides state-of-the-art management
and monitoring for acutely ill cardiac patients
and those recovering from heart surgery.
The CICU care team includes a group
of highly specialized cardiac physicians,
dedicated cardiac intensive care nurses,
respiratory therapists, nutritionists, feeding specialists,
and more that work closely
with the heart surgeon and other caregivers.
Parents are always part of the team
and participate in the care plan during rounds.
They will always have a clear picture
of their baby's treatment.
It is all part of our family
and patient-focused approach to care.
- Less than two days later, he had his first surgery.
The biggest sigh of relief for us was Dr. Jaggers came out
and went and said everything went as well as it could have.
He was only in the CICU for about five days.
- One of the best assets that
we have at Children's is our Cardiac Intensive Care Unit.
Our CICU is staffed by physicians,
who have not only
undergone a pediatric cardiology fellowship,
but also an intensive care fellowship.
And that's all they do and they're very, very good at it.
- It very much felt like they were a team working with him,
it wasn't just the nurse, it wasn't just Dr. da Cruz.
His nurses were absolutely incredible
in just making sure we knew what was going on with him
and making sure he was comfortable.
- What makes our CICU different and better is
that actually, we try to provide a home for the patient
and the family during their journey.
We concentrate a very high-level of expertise
that is available at all times.
- [Becca] They took care of him,
but they also made sure that we as parents were included
and felt like we were a part of that care team
and it wasn't just us watching them take care of him.
- Yeah, when they do rounds every morning,
they include the parents
and ask us if we have any questions or ask questions of us.
And it really makes you feel good to be included.
- [Narrator] Our nationally-renowned pediatric
and adult cardiologists provide lifelong care
for babies with congenital heart defects
in our Complex Congenital Heart Disease
and Development Clinic.
From the very beginning, through the child's development,
into their teen years.
When patients enter adulthood, they continue their care,
in our Adult Congenital Heart Disease program.
- Oliver's had two surgeries now
and he'll have one more surgery.
- The transitions have been seamless.
His Heart Institute team was behind the scenes making sure
that he was gonna get the best care he needed to.
- We used to tell parents
that their child was cured after their heart surgery,
but we know
that they can have uncommon complications later on in life.
And so, we think it's our job to take care of the child,
from the time the diagnosis is made,
for their entire lifespan.
So at the Heart Institute at Children's Hospital Colorado,
we've developed teams that would manage the fetus,
the child, and the adult throughout their lifespan.
- [Narrator] The Colorado Fetal Care Center
and the Heart Institute are national leaders
in congenital heart defect diagnosis,
treatment, and outcomes.
Physicians all over the country refer their patients
with the most complex cardiac diagnosis to us.
This means our team manages and treats higher volumes
of these complex and rare conditions.
- The benefit of seeing so many patients is
that the rare becomes common to us.
The more we see, the more we do.
And the more we do, the better we become.
- We want families to know our outcomes
and to be able to ask any question about our experience
with the particular problem that their child may have.
- The ultimate objective we have is
to have 0% of mortality and morbidity.
Until we get to that point,
we won't stop working hard to become better.
- We can't do that without good research.
(inspirational piano music)
- Children's Colorado gave us life.
They gave us the ultimate gift in making sure
that our baby would be the normal, happy toddler
and do all the normal kid stuff,
in a time that we thought maybe he wouldn't.
- Some of the doctors said he would be low energy
and I have yet to see that.
If you saw him outside of the hospital,
you would have no idea
that he has any kind of congenital heart defect.
- Without Children's Colorado and Dr. Cuneo
and Dr. Jaggers and his entire team,
I don't think he would be here and thriving.
- [Narrator] If you or your family
are facing a congenital heart defect diagnosis,
or if you would like a second opinion about your diagnosis,
the Colorado Fetal Care Center
and the Heart Institute are here for you.
Please contact us to discuss our processes and procedures,
outcomes, and research and innovations,
as you determine what's best for you and your child.