Kid-Friendly Care

Our Children's House at Baylor offers specialized services for children.

Our Children's House (OCH) at Baylor is devoted to helping children be children-even if they're coping with a disability, illness or injury.

At Our Children's House, a comprehensive range of inpatient and outpatient services is available for children from birth through 18 years of age-including physical, occupational and speech therapy. In addition to the main facility in Dallas that provides both inpatient and outpatient care, there are six outpatient facilities located throughout the Metroplex. OCH accepts many types of insurance and accepts patients with many diagnoses, including developmental delays (motor/speech), chromosomal abnormalities, disorders resulting from trauma, feeding disorders, congenital disorders, neurological disorders, fine-motor disorders, minor orthopaedic disorders and speech/language deficits. Children with disabilities resulting from an accident, injury or illness also qualify for care at OCH facilities.

Darrell Alan Cole is one of the many children who have benefited from the care provided by Our Children's House at Baylor. Diagnosed at 14 months with spinal muscular atrophy-a condition that will most likely leave him wheelchair-bound for life-he was referred to OCH by his pediatrician.

Now 4 years old and in his second round of physical and occupational therapy at Our Children's House at Baylor-Coppell, Darrell Alan is learning to do many of the same things other children his age do, such as coloring and writing his name. Therapy also is helping prevent his condition from worsening, and therapists are teaching him to make the most of his physical abilities.

"In his last evaluation, the therapist told me she definitely sees improvement," says Darrell Alan's mom, Kathy. "The care he's received is incredible. It's a very loving place, and they're willing to do just about anything to help your child."

According to Mary Hawkins, OTR, an occupational therapist and clinical coordinator at Our Children's House at Baylor-Coppell, the staff uses a team approach with every child, whether he or she has a mild short-term need or is learning to manage a more serious condition, such as cerebral palsy. "We see each child as a whole person and come up with fun activities that use their entire body," Hawkins says. "There's nothing more gratifying than our work of teaching kids how to be kids."

By Amy Lynn Smith

A physician referral is required to obtain services at Our Children's House at Baylor. For more information, call 1-888-7BAYLOR.