{"id":280743,"date":"2022-12-02T10:45:12","date_gmt":"2022-12-02T16:45:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=280743"},"modified":"2022-11-30T18:29:17","modified_gmt":"2022-12-01T00:29:17","slug":"health-care-parents-down-syndrome-diagnosis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/health-care-parents-down-syndrome-diagnosis\/","title":{"rendered":"WATCH: How health care providers should tell parents about a Down syndrome diagnosis"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u201cWe\u2019d like for [healthcare providers] to tell parents, \u201cI have some unexpected news,\u2019 rather than \u2018I have some bad news.\u2019\u201d say Chris and Carissa Carroll, Minnesota parents of three, whose second child has Down syndrome. <\/span>Jack\u2019s diagnosis after his birth in 2013 took the Carrolls by surprise following four normal ultrasounds during Carissa\u2019s pregnancy. <\/span><\/p>\n

The cold, abrupt, negative way the news was delivered by the healthcare team only compounded the Carrolls\u2019 distress as they suddenly faced a future full of unknowns for themselves and their baby.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, Jack is 9, and the nonprofit the Carrolls founded, Jack\u2019s Basket<\/a>, has delivered over 6,000 welcome baskets since 2014 to families who receive a diagnosis of <\/span>Down syndrome<\/span><\/a> either prenatally or at birth, all as part of their mission of ensuring that every child with <\/span>Down syndrome<\/span><\/a> is celebrated and every family congratulated. Besides the baskets, the second prong of the Jack\u2019s Basket approach is educating medical providers on how to have clear, compassionate conversations with families about a Down syndrome diagnosis.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Jack\u2019s Basket released <\/span>\u201c<\/span>Prenatal Consult<\/span><\/a>,\u201d<\/span> a 17-minute video intended as a resource for healthcare providers who have recently shared or are preparing to share a Down syndrome diagnosis with a family. When healthcare providers see the lived reality of families who have a child with Down syndrome, they\u2019re equipped to share new diagnoses with gentleness, hope, and genuine excitement. And when the families they counsel hear the beauty of their children\u2019s lives, they can take a deep breath and relax, open to the possibilities that lie ahead.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n