Cure 4 The Kids Foundation
knows — a practice that inevitably soon has the youngster singing as well. And there are games to play on an ipad, houses and forts to make with Play-doh.
She also exhibits feelings, worries and fears patients might have through a big blue puppet named Jaimie, who appears to have been taken off the set of “The Muppet Show.” The kids end up acting as doctors, helping Jaimie overcome anxiety.
“Every child is different,” says Waltermeyer, who with her husband Bruce, adopted a child who had a cancerous kidney tumor more than a decade ago. She’s now healthy. “What works to help one child, won’t help another.”
Nicole Norona, whose 4-year-old daughter, Ciera, has leukemia, is amazed at how positive Waltermeyer always remains.
“My daughter will get apprehensive and anxious about blood tests and Miss Sue can bring the anxiety level down by blowing bubbles with her, or by singing one of the 100 songs she knows or by coming in with toys that make noise,” Norona says. “She’s always putting maximum effort into ensuring that she’s a calming force in a very stressful situation.”
‘Calm in the storm’
Mary Soto, whose 4-year-old son, Teddy, receives treatment for hemophilia, says when kids “are freaking out about the pain of their treatments and their parents are flustered,” Waltermeyer is “the calm in the storm,” the one who gets kids to talk about their favorite colors and to name the colors in the rainbow.
“Teddy always looks for Miss Sue,” she says. “He knows she’ll help him out.”
Waltermeyer, who’s served in a similar capacity for both Sunrise Hospital and the Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation of Nevada, finds her work at the center always challenging, always rewarding.
“I get a lot of satisfaction from taking a scary situation and making it less scary, from teaching coping
■ Cure 4 The Kids Foundation operates the Children’s Specialty Center of Nevada, the only nonprofit pediatric cancer outpatient treatment center in the state, and the Hemophilia Treatment Center of Nevada.
■ In 2015, Children’s Specialty Center had 21,587 clinic visits, treating nearly 3,700 patients.
■ Since 2006, the Children’s Specialty Center has treated more than 11,000 patients, and more than 500 have received assistance through the Charity Care Plan.
■ The Hemophilia Treatment Center has clinics in Las Vegas and Reno , and sends medical teams around the state to offer treatment in Ely, Winnemucca, Elko and the Owyhee Indian Community.
■ In 2012, Cure 4 The Kids Foundation received accreditation by The Joint Commission, including the Gold Seal of Approval.
■ No child is turned away from receiving treatment that will save his or her life due to a lack of insurance or inability to pay.
techniques children and parents can use,” she says. “I can’t change what’s happening, but I can help them better navigate a difficult situation.”
Paul Harasim’s column runs Mondays in Health. Contact him at pharasim@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5273. Follow pharasim on Twitter.