Campaign Highlight

The Family Kitchen and Pantry at Novant Health Hemby Children’s Hospital

The Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center Foundation has raised nearly $250,000 to build a family kitchen and pantry. The provision of a proper kitchen and fully stocked pantry for use by our patient’s families is critical to Novant Health’s vision to improve the health of not only our littlest patients, but also those family members taking part in their journey.

These new family oriented facilities are to be built on the pediatric floor of Hemby Children’s Hospital, providing the easiest and most convenient access for the families of patients in the Pediatric Unit, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and patients undergoing treatment on-site from our St. Jude Affiliate Clinic.

The St. Jude Affiliate Clinic at Hemby Children’s Hospital gives children access to more lifesaving treatments and clinical trials than any other cancer treatment facility in the region. Our pediatric cancer clinic is the only St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital affiliate in the Carolinas.

In some cases, children treated at St. Jude Affiliate Clinic at Hemby Children’s Hospital may go to St. Jude to take part in clinical trials and then return to Charlotte for ongoing care with our experts, ranging from social workers to pastoral staff to child life specialists.

Designed with families in mind, the new kitchen will offer many comforts of home and helps families stay focused on the healing and recovery process. Additionally, the option of having a fully stocked pantry gives parents the opportunity to better cater to any strict dietary needs or those times when meals are missed due to procedure conflicts. These new facilities will be equipped with a kitchen featuring two refrigerators and freezers, two microwaves, and two industrial coffee makers for optimal convenience.

The kitchen is located adjacent to the newly designed family lounge with a television and computer workstations. The lounge provides a comfortable place for family members and visitors to eat, read, catch up on the news and get to know other families without disturbing the hospitalized child, who may be resting or receiving care.

Because Novant Health emphasizes the importance of health not only in our centers, but in the homes of our patients, the family kitchen will serve as the teaching space for a contracted outpatient dietician to educate families on disease-specific dietary adjustments.

With your donation to this important cause, together we can help improve and save lives at Hemby Children’s Hospital.