Parent Blog: Shalan and Kyle Knapke

In their words

Shalan and Kyle Knapke
Belle Plaine, IA

In November 2015, we were referred to University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital after our 20 week ultrasound showed that our baby’s right ventricle had not developed.

Our experience at UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital has been nothing short of amazing. Each time we enter the facility, we are always welcomed with a smile. We feel as if Adira is the only patient her doctors and nurses are seeing that day even though we know that is far from the truth. Everyone on our care team is so knowledgeable, and we are encouraged to ask questions. These questions are explained very well in terms we understand and provide us a better insight into our daughter’s diagnosis and what we can do to help her. We love UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital and our care team as they have given us the opportunity to watch our daughter grow, thrive, and develop into the feisty (almost) 3-year-old she is today! We are forever grateful for all they’ve done and will continue to do for our daughter!

Benjamin Reinking, MD, is Adira’s primary cardiologist, and her surgeons are Marco Ricci, MD, MBA, and Yuki Nakamura, MD. Osamah Aldoss, MBBS, MD, has performed two cardiac catheterizations. Trudy Pierick, ARNP, is Adira’s nurse practitioner and Brenda Haag, RN, is her fetal nurse coordinator, who we see regularly along with cardiology fellows and countless nurses who are some of the best we’ve ever had! We are also members of the Heart Friends Support Group.

It’s THE best hospital around! We are always so impressed with the care our daughter receives, and we are also impressed with the care and attention given to us, as parents, and to our other children who have visited the hospital while Adira has been admitted. We also love the affiliation with the Ronald McDonald House as it has allowed us to remain a family during extended hospital stays. We are so blessed to have such an amazing hospital nearby!