We need to talk about the state of pediatric care in America. Unfortunately, the quality of care has decreased in recent years since more and more hospitals have decided to increase their adult care units, leaving little to no room for growth in pediatrics. In this episode of Straight Outta Health IT, we have the pleasure of hosting Dr. Alana Arnold, a leader in pediatric emergency medicine and a physician in this area.

Dr. Arnold first got in love with pediatrics thanks to the kids’ honesty and humor. This taught her that providing high-quality care for children could change their lives forever. Mixing this with the thrill of the ER environment and the plethora of procedures that could be done ignited a passion in Alana’s professional life. Children who don’t get proper care are transferred outside the system, resulting in increased costs and delays. It was under these premises that Alana started Premier Pediatric Solutions, her consulting business.

Mental health has also been a crisis item to be addressed when it comes to pediatric medicine. In mental and physical health, there aren’t enough tools and doctors to deliver proper care to children, and hospitals are being stretched thin. Alana mentions some solutions that could help bring people into pediatric care, recognizing that training and low income at the beginning are possibly two reasons that are not appealing for many. She also highlights how delivering good care could start by increasing the pediatric focus for ER residents.

Pediatric care is also affected by the inequities in social determinants of health. Dr. Arnold gives specific examples of how the Black kids community has a higher death rate from mistreated asthma than their white counterparts. The inequities among communities are a threat to the pediatric ward; this is only a micro example of what’s happening at the macro level of healthcare. She also walks us through the preventable components that could potentially decrease the death rate among BIPOC communities regarding pediatric care.

Advocacy is a really great discussion topic, especially among the BIPOC community, in which, in many cases, they are dismissed. Alana shares some tips on advocacy, establishing that it’s the physician’s job to explain what is going on to every patient. Dr. Alana also shares the technology she is developing in her consulting work that’s helping some ED/ERs to increase their revenue sevenfold.

Tune in to this beautiful episode about pediatric care, and do not doubt to reach out to Dr. Alana if you have any questions!