What is your name, title and job function?
My name is Rochel Herzka and I am a Patient Liaison for Star Pediatric Home Care. The function of a Patient Liaison is to be a resource to our clients and assist them in gaining access to resources they need to enhance their lives and the lives of their medically fragile child. I help families transition from the hospital to home setting and work on the chemistry between families and their nurses to make sure the families are comfortable. I act as an intermediary on behalf of the families we service and collaborate with hospitals, durable medical equipment companies, schools and help navigate both private and Medicaid insurances to ensure the needs of the child are met.
What motivated you to your current position in Pediatric Home Care?
The short answer is personal experience. I have had personal experience on the other side of what I do now. I was receiving home care nursing for a number of years. I saw first hand what it was like having this service. There were many things about the services that worked really well and I was completely happy with the manner in which the services were delivered. However, I felt there was room for significant improvement in certain areas. I felt there was a disconnect between the home-care companies’ understanding of what it is like to have their services and the personal needs of my family. I felt a lack of empathy. Home-care nursing is a very personal experience. It is important to have the right person in your home that is sensitive to your family dynamics, preferences, cultural and religious beliefs and customs. I knew there was a way to make home care a more personal experience. I promised myself then to get involved to help families and advocate for them so that they would not feel that same disconnect, so they would feel empathy. I found Star Pediatric Home Care shared in my vision of improving and enhancing the experience families had with home-care nursing.
How do you think your personal experience impacts the work that you do?
I am able to empathize with the situations, challenges, success and myriad of emotions that go along with having home-care services. I am able to apply my experiences to understand the needs of the family. Having a similar experience gives me perspective that I use to advocate for the families for whom we provide services. In today’s health-care setting I feel that sometimes the human factor can get lost, that real understanding and empathy can be lacking. My experiences and my job allow me to bring the human factor and empathy back so that the clients at Star Pediatric Home Care can benefit. I am motivated by my experience to improve the experience of others.
Having the experience that you do, what do you think makes Star Pediatric Home Care different?
Star Pediatric Home Care was founded by pediatric home-care nurses with years of experience working in neonatal and pediatric ICUs of hospitals. The administration at Star Pediatrics is composed of nurses and there are nurses that work at every level of the company. The approach at Star Pediatrics is family oriented and patient centered. The focus of the company is to ensure that children thrive at home, where they belong with their family and loved ones. Star Pediatrics only works with pediatric clients and specializes in this population. Further to that, Star Pediatrics understands that clients and their families deserve an advocate to serve as a voice in the company. A person with experience receiving the services provided, like me, to be a resource for the family.
What advice would you give parents facing similar challenges that you have been able to overcome?
In the beginning things aren’t easy. When you first come home from the hospital it is very hectic. Finding the right nurses and making a new routine takes time. Having open communication and providing feedback with the agency is crucial. If you have a company, like Star Pediatric Home Care, that is willing to listen and work with you and your needs, things will begin to fall into place and a routine that is comfortable will emerge. Every child coming home with nursing presents their own set of challenges. Every family has its own dynamics. I am no fool to believe that overcoming these challenges is easy, but as a Jewish woman I have to say that faith and prayer is the only real way to overcome the challenges. Also, having an agency like Star Pediatric Home Care, which is sensitive to the needs of the family, doesn’t hurt either.
