Children's Mercy

Friendly neighborhood Spider-Man? Meet a Children's Mercy version. 🕷️ Connor, a Children's Mercy patient and lifelong Spider-Man fan, partnered with art therapist Katie to turn a radiation mask used during his leukemia treatment into a life-size Spider-Man sculpture. The project was entirely Connor's idea and even incorporated custom pieces he created with his own 3D printer. Experiences like these demonstrate the value of therapeutic arts in pediatric health care. Art therapy provides patients with opportunities to process emotions, express their identities, regain a sense of agency and focus on their strengths rather than their diagnosis. For Connor, the project transformed a medical object into a personal symbol of resilience and creativity. For care teams and families, it serves as a powerful reminder that healing extends beyond clinical treatment and includes supporting the whole child. His web-slinging wisdom for others navigating a health journey: "Never give up. Always believe in yourself." 🕸️❤️ Learn more about the many ways Children's Mercy supports patients and families through creative and therapeutic programming: https://cmkc.link/4hnhsJQ

Community partnerships create meaningful impact. Thank you to the Peanut and Grateful families for another successful Strokes for Pediatric Strokes Golf Tournament benefiting the Children's Mercy Pediatric Stroke Program. The event's mission goes beyond fundraising. It helps increase awareness of pediatric stroke, strengthens connections among local stroke families and supports strategic initiatives that advance research, education and family resources. Proceeds directly benefit the Pediatric Stroke Fund at Children's Mercy, home to the region's only pediatric stroke center and one of just 10 multidisciplinary pediatric stroke clinics in the country. We are grateful to everyone whose generosity is helping move pediatric stroke care forward and bring hope to children and families across our region.

A hospital room wasn’t where Sami expected to celebrate her 17th birthday. But what happened there became the start of something much bigger. 🔁 🎁 When it was Sami’s special day, her care team made sure she felt celebrated, loved and surrounded by kindness. Years later, she is turning that feeling into something meaningful for other kids and families. Through Birthday Brightness, a program she created after years of dreaming, planning and fundraising, Sami delivered more than 50 birthday gifts to Children’s Mercy for patients’ big days in the hospital. This is what hope can look like in action: a former patient uses her own experience to bring joy, comfort and connection to children who understand hospital stays in a way most people never will. Sami recently celebrated one year in remission, and now the first Birthday Brightness baskets are already reaching patients. It is a beautiful full-circle reminder that the care we provide can live far beyond a hospital room. Sami, thank you for showing us the power of giving back with purpose and heart. You help make birthdays brighter for Children’s Mercy kids and inspire us along the way. Know a child or teen that wants to give back in creative ways like Sami? Check out our Junior Champion program: https://cmkc.link/45xzG7q

How can primary care providers reduce the long-term impact of painful medical experiences? Amanda Deacy, PhD, shares practical strategies for managing pediatric pain, improving patient trust and creating more positive healthcare encounters. Listen wherever you get podcasts and claim credit at the link below. https://cmkc.link/495XkHu

More than 160 community leaders, advocates, health care professionals, educators and partners came together at the 2026 Children's Health Summit to connect, learn and strengthen our shared commitment to improving the health and wellbeing of children and families across our region. We are grateful to keynote speaker Merideth Rose, CEO of Cornerstones of Care, for her inspiring message on the importance of community and our collective responsibility to create a world of well-being for children and families. Her remarks served as a powerful reminder that meaningful change happens through partnership. We also proudly celebrated the inaugural recipients of the Community Health Champion Award: Dr. Stephani Stancil, PhD, APRN and Synergy Services. Through their longstanding collaboration—including more than a decade of partnership supporting youth and families through the on-site Children's Mercy clinic at the Synergy Services Youth Resiliency Center—they exemplify what is possible when organizations work together to meet community needs. Thank you to everyone who joined us. We look forward to continuing this important work alongside our partners to help every child thrive. 💙

At Children’s Mercy, innovation is never about technology alone. It is about what that technology makes possible for children and families. Children’s Mercy Kansas recently completed its first robotic-assisted surgery, bringing more advanced, minimally invasive surgical options to children and families. 🙌 Using the da Vinci surgical platform, our surgical teams can perform certain procedures through smaller incisions, which may help reduce pain, shorten hospital stays and support a quicker return to the everyday moments kids love. The first procedure was a pyeloplasty to treat ureteropelvic junction (UPJ) obstruction, a blockage that affects how urine drains from the kidney. It was completed 15 minutes faster than the national average and performed by our very own pediatric urologist Gino Vricella, MD, one of the nation’s most experienced pediatric robotic surgeons. “Having the da Vinci platform allows us to share this technology with our patients, who no longer have to travel long distances to get this elevated level of care,” Dr. Vricella said. This milestone reflects years of planning, collaboration and commitment across Children’s Mercy, with teams supporting everything from training and safety to patient care and operations. “I’m incredibly proud of our teams for helping to expand access to innovative, minimally invasive surgery while improving outcomes and the experience for our patients and families,” said Stacey Murr, MSN, RN, CPN, NE-BC, Vice President of Clinical Operations. And this is just the beginning. With more flexibility and control than traditional laparoscopic tools, the da Vinci platform will help support more complex surgeries designed for kids in the future. ➡️ A new tool, a lot of teamwork and one clear purpose: helping kids get the care they need to keep moving forward.

Some of the most meaningful moments at Children's Mercy happen because someone decides to stay a little longer, listen a little closer or lend a helping hand. Patti, our July Volunteer of the month, is known for her flexibility, kindness and unwavering dedication to patients and families. She consistently goes above and beyond, often staying beyond her scheduled shifts to provide additional support when it’s needed most. Over the past two years, Patti has contributed nearly 400 volunteer hours, helping create meaningful moments of comfort and connection. From supporting siblings during a hospital stay to offering encouragement to families facing difficult circumstances, Patti exemplifies the impact volunteers have on the patient and family experience. Thank you, Patti, for making Children's Mercy a more compassionate place for every child and family you serve. 💙

Some of the best workplace cultures are built in the moments when people gather, share stories and feel truly seen. At Children’s Mercy, our Employee Resource Groups help make that possible. La CASA recently celebrated six years of connection and community, bringing team members together over food from Taste of Brazil, meaningful conversations and plenty of soccer spirit in honor of the world’s game. More than a celebration, the anniversary was a reminder of why groups like La CASA matter. Across Children’s Mercy, our 10+ Employee Resource Groups create space for team members to build relationships, share experiences, grow professionally and deepen understanding of the cultures and perspectives that shape our organization and the families we serve. For La CASA, that means helping employees and allies learn from the experiences of Latino/Hispanic colleagues, support their career growth and turn cultural understanding into stronger community connections. Congratulations to La CASA on six years of advocacy, pride and belonging. Thank you to everyone who has helped shape this meaningful community at Children’s Mercy. ❤️🏠

Early identification makes all the difference when it comes to treating kids and teens with eating disorders. In this episode of Pediatrics in Practice, Sara Gould, PhD, Clinical Psychologist and Director of the Eating Disorders Center at Children’s Mercy, shares insights to help pediatric providers recognize warning signs sooner and support patients and families through the next steps in care. Tune in for practical guidance on identifying concerning behaviors, understanding when to intervene and helping connect families with the resources they need. 🎧 Listen now: https://cmkc.link/4vJggHt ✅ Claim CME: cmkc.link/cmepodcast #PediatricsInPractice #EatingDisorders #MentalHealth #PediatricHealthcare

At Children’s Mercy, care goes far beyond medicine. Sometimes, it looks like a physician, a nurse and an activity coordinator willingly stepping under a stream of sticky slime. 🫟 During inpatient camp week, kids who may not be able to attend events in the community get five full days of fun, connection and choice right here in the hospital. One fan-favorite tradition: Patients vote for the team members they’d most like to see brave the bucket. This year, Ava, Cameron and Dr. Denesh said yes to the mess, trading their regular scrubs for outfits ready for all that green glory. It’s silly. It’s messy. And it matters. 💚 Moments like this help kids feel like kids, even during a hospital stay. They create laughter, build trust and remind our patients that joy belongs here, too. Thank you to our Child Life team, volunteers and clinical leaders for bringing camp to our patients and showing what compassionate, whole-child care can look like, slime buckets and all.