Transitioning from pediatric to adult care can be challenging for any young person, but those challenges are often amplified for children with special healthcare needs. Two young adults with complex medical conditions share their experience with transitioning from pediatric to adult care. 

Each month, we’re shining a spotlight on a NICHQ employee, asking them to share their memories, advice, and goals. This month, NICHQ Web & Product Manager Nathanial Ray Pickett, Ph.D., shares his untraditional path to working in MCH, while highlighting his passion for equity, resisting oppression, and giving voice to the voiceless.  

 Our main story this episode highlights he links between maternal and infant health, and the impacts of preterm birth on health outcomes for mothers, birthing people, and babies. Hear from NICHQ VP of Equity and Innovation Dr. Stacy Scott, Ph.D. D, MPA, who shares some equity considerations regarding disparate rates of preterm birth, infant mortality, and maternal mortality. Dr. Zsakeba Henderson, MD, FACOG, NICHQ’s senior health advisor, also connects the impact of maternal health on infant health outcomes while shining a light on the U.S. maternal mortality crisis and current policy initiatives that can help reverse maternal mortality trends.  

Each month, we’re shining a spotlight on a NICHQ employee, asking them to share their memories, advice, and goals. This month, NICHQ Project Manager Callie Rowland, MPH, shares her passion for working to affect change in the system, serving all mothers and children, and working for an organization that aims to help create more equitable systems.

Each month, we’re shining a spotlight on a NICHQ employee, asking them to share their memories, advice, and goals. This month, NICHQ Project Manager Madeline D'Onfro, MPH, shares her passion for creating systems that protect members of society who are marginalized the most and improving experiences for those with the highest needs.

Whether transitioning to college or a full-time job, it's a time when young adults are going to be establishing their independence from their nuclear family and taking responsibility for their own needs. For a young person with special healthcare needs such as SCD, the responsibilities are compounded by the additional need to begin transitioning from pediatric to adult care. Read more for four helpful strategies for transitioning from pediatric to adult care for people living with sickle cell disease and other special health conditions.