What does it mean “to know?”

          In certain circles, you may hear the key to success is “who you know.” But from our perspective caring for children, we believe true success depends on who knows you.
            It’s a delicate distinction, indeed, but the concept of knowing is the fundamental theme behind what we do here at St. Louis Children’s Hospital- a theme highlighted and celebrated in our new advertising campaign, entitled “Pursue Knowing.”
            When parents have a sick child, they expect and need answers from their child’s medical team. What’s causing my child’s fever? How do I prevent an asthma attack? Could my child have diabetes?
            Further, from an academic medical center tied to one of the most prestigious medical schools in the country, you expect the doctors to know what research is underway that could impact care in the future. Is there a clinical trial that may offer new hope for a terminal diagnosis? Are there new pharmaceutical options that could address my child’s disease with fewer side effects or complications?
            Helping remove a parent’s fear of the unknown is a critical step in coping with a child’s medical challenge, and in delivering the best possible care to that child and his family. That comes from knowing – knowing how to recognize the disease, knowing how to treat that disease, and knowing which innovations may provide new answers.
              However, our pursuit of knowing goes deeper still, and is what we believe sets us apart as one of the nation’s top five pediatric hospitals. Like the innate curiosity of a child, we are consumed by the need to know – to learn more.
            We understand why kids ask “Why do stars twinkle?” and “Do dogs have dreams?” because those questions can lead to questions like “How do you treat hypoglycemia?”, “How do you diagnose hypoplastic left heart syndrome?” and “Which fairy tale best calms the nerves of a frightened pre-schooler before surgery?”
            Knowing everything about our patients helps us provide unique care– medically and emotionally – to every patient, every family, every day.
            The pursuit of knowing means knowing a child’s teddy bear’s name, his favorite kind of pizza and what song is most likely to lull him to sleep.
            We invite you to watch our new commercial in the video monitor to the right. We’d love to hear what you think of the “Pursue Knowing” campaign.
            What kinds of things does your child want to know?  Has your son or daughter ever asked you a question that made you laugh? Or that you weren’t sure you’d ever be able to answer? We’d love to hear them. Check out our question collection at pursueknowing.com. And feel free to submit your own.
            Questions like these inspire us to pursue knowing in everything we do, and why when your child visits St. Louis Children’s Hospital, you can feel confident that we not only know your child’s illness, we will know your child.