When nurse Annette Logan-Parker wanted to change how children facing catastrophic medical situations were treated, she says Nevada failed to see the need. So, she decided to set out on her own to challenge the system and make a difference.
If you’ve ever been told that something can’t be done, then be sure to tune in to this episode of The Women’s Eye Podcast. Joining me is Annette Logan-Parker, the founder and Chief Advocacy & Innovation Officer of Cure 4 The Kids Foundation, Nevada’s only accredited outpatient pediatric cancer and rare disease treatment center.
Available also on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube
Annette started her groundbreaking nonprofit from scratch 20 years ago. As she says, “How we treat people matters, especially when they are in the biggest crisis of their life.” Before C4K, this natural-born caregiver spent 15 years as a nurse, taking care of patients and rising through the medical ranks.
“I loved what healthcare is at its very best. But I watched something happen inside those institutions that I couldn’t make peace with. I watched patients treated as line items; I watched care decisions being made not on what somebody needed, but who was paying for it. I watched colleagues…burning out, not because they stopped caring, but because the system stopped valuing them.”
— Annette Logan-Parker
Annette believed there was something missing. She called it “healthcare hospitality: the idea that excellence and genuine human care are not competing priorities.” That, she says, is what healthcare is about.
She talks about how her life dramatically shifted when her son Alex had a catastrophic football injury that led to chronic neuropathy of the diaphragm and 20 surgeries over four years. Logan-Parker then had to face the healthcare industry from the patient side.
“There’s got to be a better way for all of us, because it’s not necessarily the diagnosis. It’s the system that doesn’t have the capacity to shepherd people through devastating conditions…and that became the foundational concept for Cure 4 The Kids Foundation.
I wanted to create something where all of the amazing things of healthcare, excellence, responsiveness, creativity and drive married things like access and charity.
I am thrilled to be hosting the Cure 4 The Kid’s 15th Annual Circus Couture Gala on May 7th, which brings circus, art, and charity together for the entire community. Here’s a small sample of some of the incredible designer costumes worn at past galas.
Circus Couture Photos: SON Studios
On this episode of The Women’s Eye podcast, we’ll talk all-things-charity gala as well as:
- What is the C4K Way
- The power of “healthcare hospitality”
- Why every child deserves a cure
- How her son is now thriving as a Clark County firefighter
- Annette’s advice to someone who says something can’t be done
For more information on Annette, Cure 4 The Kids, and how you can support a cure, check out:
Website: cure4thekids.org
IG: @cure4thekids
FB: @cure4thekidsfoundation
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