Being diagnosed with a chronic medical condition during childhood or adolescence shapes the lives of the patient and their family. In Rheumatology, the pediatric rheumatologist can become an additional parent and a partner. Pediatric hospitals and clinics become homes away from home. They are often painted bright colors, have comfy furniture and entertainment throughout the halls as everyone tries to make the heartbreaking reality of disease in children more palatable. Thankfully, treatment success in rheumatology is the norm and there will come a day in most patient’s lives when they need to say goodbye to their pediatric rheumatologist and find a new adult-focused rheumatologist. Transitioning from the pediatrician’s office is a day most patients and parents dread. This process, known as “transition,” is an integral part to any young person’s care.
Transition care from pediatrics to adult medicine is a process that begins the day the child or teen is diagnosed. It is a process that involves individualization and separation from caregivers and requires the participation of doctors, patients and parents. In reality, this is a process all of us go through, but the addition of a medical condition makes the need for an intentional approach even more important. Thankfully, pediatricians and pediatric hospitals have wisened up to this need as the consequences of a poor transition is well documented. Patients can fall through the gap between pediatrics and internal medicine, not get the needed care and suffer irreversible organ damage.
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