Program areas at Ryan House
Ryan House provides family respite services to Arizona children with life-limiting and terminal conditions. Respite care is a gift of time short-term overnight stays allow families to take critical breaks from the physical, emotional, psycho-social stress and around-the-clock challenges of caring for a child who is medically complex. It is the solution for renewed energies, as regular time off is essential to prevent family fatigue and breakdown and costly emergency room visits for emergency respite. Care is concurrent with curative treatments and coordinated with the childs primary care physician. Ryan House offers resources and support programs for siblings to interact with other children whose brothers and sisters have similar needs. At Ryan House, children and families can receive up to 28 days of respite care per year at no cost to the family. Six individual bedrooms and one family suite are available for family respite services. During fiscal year 2023, 114 children received family respite services and 1,352 days of respite care were provided.
Life-enhancing therapies program - children staying at Ryan House are engaged daily in life-enhancing therapeutic activities customized for their age, conditions and developmental abilities including hydrotherapy pool, art, pet therapy, sensory, music and legacy building. A certified child life specialist, clinical staff, and trained volunteers provide specialized activities that improve overall quality of life by providing opportunities to experience new sensations, develop skills and gain confidence, and maximize time for kids to be kids. The Ryan House child life program engages the entire extended family throughout the year with themed parties and events to build community. Our child life specialist plays a critical role in providing seamless coordination of care.
Pediatric end-of-life care - families with a child facing end-of-life receive supportive planning and compassionate care consistent with clinical, cultural, and ethical standards and may stay as long as needed at no charge to families. The Ryan House care team provides parents, guardians and siblings with a loving system of support and comfort as well as anticipatory grief and bereavement support including a personalized memory tile in the memorial garden, family counseling, photos, and bereavement boxes filled with special keepsakes. On-going support is provided through a bi-weekly support group in partnership with new song center for grieving children. Two individual bedrooms and two family suites are available for end-of-life care. During fiscal year 2023, 58 children received end-of-life care at Ryan House and 294 days of end-of-life care were provided.