[Pikea]

We may be adopting a child with a trach. The trach is not intended to be permanent and the plan is to remove it when he gains more weight and gets bigger(he's 1 year old). Are there families out there that go places with their child with a trach like shopping, day trips, vacations, etc...? CPS requires he go everywhere in an ambulance with his foster parents. The foster parents don't know why he just can't go in a car. I don't know why he just can't go in a car either. Any comments?

Also, the print on the threads have become microscopic. Is it just my computer?

[devildogwife]

Originally Posted by Pikea

We may be adopting a child with a trach. The trach is not intended to be permanent and the plan is to remove it when he gains more weight and gets bigger(he's 1 year old). Are there families out there that go places with their child with a trach like shopping, day trips, vacations, etc...? CPS requires he go everywhere in an ambulance with his foster parents. The foster parents don't know why he just can't go in a car. I don't know why he just can't go in a car either. Any comments?

Also, the print on the threads have become microscopic. Is it just my computer?

Everywhere in an ambulance? That's nuts. Are the foster parents not trained on the trach?

My former FD had a trach and we went through hours of training to learn it all. We first learned to suction, learned to clean it, learned to change it together (3 times) and then learned to change it seperately, and then learned specialized CPR. RT and her nurses trained us. It is VERY overwhelming at first. You cannot go anywhere with that child without suction and an emergency trach change bag. No where. If you do, the child could very easily lose their airway.

-You have to clean a trach (the stoma) and change trach ties 2x a day.

-You suction many, many times during the day, even more when they're sick.

-The trach gets changed out every week.

-You have to learn specialized CPR

-learn a lot of equipment for at home (not a huge deal for us as we had already used some for our son)

Yes, we took her anywhere we'd take any other child. School, the store, restaurant, movies, trick or treating, etc. You just always must have suction and your trach bag (they'll help you learn how to pack it, super important) with you wherever you go, no exceptions.

You will never be able to leave the child with anyone who isn't trained on her trach. That includes car rides. That includes respite. Everyone must be trained. My FD's teachers and van driver were all trained by a nurse how to suction and how to change a trach in an emergency.

Also, know that all of the equipment, for night time especially takes up a LOT of room.

HTH. Let me know if you have any other questions. All of the trach care very quickly becomes second nature.

[momraine]

I have not dealt with it, but I have a friend who has a daughter who will likely have hers for a very long time. They take her everywhere. They even took her to a conference we were at and stayed at a hotel.

[Pikea]

The foster parents are well trained on the trach but they are just following the rules. They have also gave us some basic training which we use when we go visit him. When we get him we want to live life like any other family. The child only goes to doctor appointments and that's it. He has not seen anything outside of his foster home and medical facility.

[devildogwife]

I find that a very strange rule. And I don't really understand the necessity of it if the child is stable and they are trach-trained. Is the child also ventilator dependant?

I'm glad my former FD never had that rule.

[Pikea]

No. He's not vent dependent. The foster parents are very capable of handling him in the environment. I think the main problem is that there is shotty medical info about why he has the trach since mom abandoned him shortly after birth and he wasn't placed in foster care until he was about 5 months old. No one knows what happened during that time and medical records are sketchy.