Patient Care Navigator Helps Out-of-State Families Receive Care from Arkansas Children’s Heart Institute

Pediatric Cardiology Specialty Nurse Abby Smith, R.N., BSN, CCRN, CPN, is a patient care navigator for Arkansas Children's Heart Institute, helping out-of-state families and providers navigate the referral process more easily. But the heart of her role is so much more.

“Families have enough to worry about when their child has a heart condition, and if I can help take some of that stress off their shoulders and be able to take care of the logistics side of things, they can focus on what matters most, which is their child, and not have to worry about lodging and appointments, and I can make that part easier for them,” Smith said.

In the following Q&A, Smith shared about her role as a patient care navigator.

Why should out-of-state families consider coming to Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH) in Little Rock for pediatric cardiology care?

"Parents should consider coming to Arkansas Children's Heart Institute for second opinions or for heart care because it is always reasonable to want to make sure you're exhausting every option when it comes to your child's heart care. There's lots of options out there, and we have a lot to offer as far as cutting-edge technology and multidisciplinary teams."

How is a pediatric cardiologist different?

"Coming to a pediatric cardiologist is different. It's not like sending your child to an adult cardiologist, asking them to diagnose and fix these problems. Our cardiologists here are specially trained in congenital heart disease. This is what they do. They've come into pediatrics for a reason. They have that care and compassion. They let the kiddos listen to their own hearts with the stethoscopes. They just enjoy it, and they love what they do, and they're so good at it."

What makes the Arkansas Children’s Heart Institute a leader in pediatric care?

"Here at the Arkansas Children's Heart Institute, we have lots to offer. We have a very advanced cath lab. We have a hybrid cath lab. We also have a 3D-model printer, which is amazing, to be able to take a cardiac CT and turn it into a tiny little model so surgeons can see it and really plan before they go in there (to operate), which I think is incredible.

"Within the Heart Institute, you may think just cardiology, but they go so much deeper. We have fetal cardiology, where they start taking care of and looking at these babies before they're even born. We have advanced cardiac imaging. ... We have cardiovascular genetics clinics for our connective tissue disorders. We've got single-ventricle clinics and a transplant program. We have an adult congenital program. With medicine the way it is and forever progressing, growing and learning new things, these patients are living longer, and so we have a whole program and a team that is just dedicated to our adults who are living with congenital heart disease."

Walk through the process of out-of-state families and providers reaching out for an appointment at ACH?

"It usually starts with a phone call, an email or a referral that comes through to me as the contact person, and once I get that and I gather the information, I will reach out to their primary cardiologist, gather all their medical history, any imaging they've had done, study scans they've had done and make sure that our team can look over all that, do their research, have their meetings and make sure that they know that child the best they can without actually having the child in person. So, when the patient and the family do come, we can make sure we utilize their time the best possible, knowing they're coming from out of state."

When is it appropriate for a family to seek a second opinion?

"Parents are always welcome to seek a second opinion, whether it be for a very complex congenital heart disease or one of the simpler congenital heart diseases. As a parent, they have every right to want a second opinion."

For families who might feel overwhelmed by the idea of going out of state for care, what can your role do to help?

“I work with families to make sure that they understand every step of the way – what is coming, what the next step is, what the current step. ... ‘This is what’s going to happen,’ ‘This is when we’re having this appointment, that appointment,’ ‘You can expect this.’

"I will help them navigate not only coming to a new state, a new city, but being able to guide them through that. That's a very overwhelming process to think about, not only going out-of-state for care, but also coming and trying to figure out, 'Where am I going to stay,' 'Where do I go for groceries, and stuff like that. So, my job walks them through every step of the way.

“I’m here to help take that intimidation away and help them have a person that they know to be able to guide them through this process.”

How quickly can out-of-state parents expect an appointment for their child?

“Having one point of contact person is beneficial to be able to have a direct link into the clinic and the schedule and know that you’re going to get an appointment as soon as possible.”

What does it mean to you personally to be able to make coming to Arkansas Children’s easier for families?

"I have a unique perspective with having my sister, who was a cardiology patient here at Arkansas Children's for 23 years. The perspective of being on the family side and as a nurse has been incredible. So personally, to be able to showcase and tell people everything that goes on here and the exciting interventions that are happening and the cutting-edge technology, is just very personal to me, because I saw what they were able to do for my sister."

* This article was written by the Arkansas Children’s content team and medically reviewed by Abby Smith, R.N.