1-year-old Graduates from Hospice Care

Summer is the season for high school and college commencement ceremonies, and Kenya and her son Bryson are celebrating a unique graduation. One-year-old Bryson has graduated from hospice care.

Bryson had been a patient in the Capital Caring pediatric hospice and palliative program in Washington, D.C., since he was born.  He experienced some trauma during birth that led to brain damage and he has spent much of his young life in the hospital.

“It was hard to explain to my friends that I have a baby but he’s was not with me; he was usually in the hospital,”  Kenya remembered as she bobbled Bryson from hip to hip.

“They told me he wouldn’t make it when we took him off the machines. I held him one last time and left the hospital. They called me a day later and told me he was still breathing on his own and to come back and hold him.”

Surrounding Families with Care and Support
With specialized post-natal care, Capital Caring is helping families sort through the  choices of services and treatments and providing assistance to families as they cope with the complex issues resulting from a serious illness or condition.

Throughout Bryson’s time in hospice care, our expert team was with him and his mother every step of the way – whether was giving him medication or helping Kenya talk through her situation.

“They let me talk it out and say what I needed to say. I knew that they were here for us day or night,” Kenya said.

During the holidays in 2018, Bryson’s condition started to improve. His hospitalizations decreased and his strength increased as he began developing into a strong baby boy. Right around his first birthday, Baby Bryson was discharged from Capital Caring hospice as his condition no longer met terms for him to receive hospice care.

While the Capital Caring team misses the frequent interactions with him, we are thrilled that he continues to thrive and defy all the medical predictions of his condition.

Kenya knows Capital Caring will still be here to support them both if things change, but our hope is that Baby Bryson continues to thrive and live a long, healthy life.

Baby Bryson is shown below with his mom on his first birthday.