Every March our annual report is due to our headquarters office in Tampa to share our accomplishments from the previous year. A special thanks to all of the departments that contributed information to the 2020 Annual Report. Despite many historical events throughout 2020, the SHC-Portland team remained true to our mission and moved steadily ahead with many great accomplishments, including several awards!

The list of research publications and education is impressive. Research publications span across many departments, from medical staff, clinical research, speech therapy, motion lab, and more! While we are very accustomed to our physician residents and medical student rotations, other departments also provide training to residents and interns through several academic affiliations, including our orthotics and prosthetics department. Our rehabilitation services department also provides a variety of education through academic affiliations in the areas of physical therapy, speech therapy, and occupational therapy.

On the operational front, Fast Track Video Visits launched in 2020 and rapidly expanded for outpatient clinic visits as well as speech therapy visits. The future of telehealth is here to stay as many patients enjoy the convenience of being seen from the comfort of their home.

Often the quietest area of our hospital is our basic science research department. I am proud to say that all of our labs and research imaging core have continued with their research projects and continue to be supported by excellent grant funding. Moreover, our clinical research department continues to receive grants for the latest drug trials and innovative treatments in certain pediatric neuromuscular conditions.

I have only mentioned a few highlights from SHC-Portland’s 36 page annual report. I am truly inspired by our team’s unwavering commitment to our mission and to achieving many goals throughout the historic COVID-19 year of 2020!

Thank you!

Dereesa Reid, MBA
Hospital Administrator at Shriners Hospitals for Children – Portland

The photo collage to the right shares a bit about Emily’s journey, a long-term patient at the Portland Shriners Hospital. After 50 surgeries and 17 years as a patient at the Portland Shriners Hospital, Emily recently graduated from the Hospital School Program. In a truly inspiring essay, Emily shares her experience at the Portland Shriners Hospital and what her journey has meant to her. Read about her experience in her own words by clicking the link below.

Every year, our rehabilitation team coordinates an Assistive Technology (AT) Resource Fair open to all community members who would like to learn about augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), technology devices, and other resources. This year, due to COVID-19, our rehabilitation team found a creative solution to adapt this event to a virtual setting.

As usual, this event featured several vendors that specialize in AT devices for a variety of different needs, such as access, mobility, recreation, communication, and more! Instead of the traditional booth, each vendor created a video to demonstrate their device or program and attendees were invited to ask questions through an interactive Q & A.

Because the resources are housed in an online video format, the hope is that community members with AAC needs are able to benefit from the available resources throughout the year. The virtual event was held successfully last week and hosted a whopping 185 registered attendees!

What started as a project to design reusable face masks amid the personal protective equipment (PPE) shortage of the COVID-19 pandemic, evolved to developing innovative ways for the specialists at the Portland Shriners Hospital to improve care.

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the US was facing a national shortage of PPE. During this period, our hospital began efforts to conserve PPE as much as possible. This inspired an idea to create our own customized and reusable respirators for our medical team to utilize.

To create a customized respirator, they begin by scanning a staff members face to map the design of a mask that would ensure a custom, individualized fit to the wearer’s face. After that, the 3-D printer produces a personalized silicone mold based on the scan as well as a hard shell which will act as the exterior barrier to the mask. In addition to being reusable, the soft silicone material and the customized molding make these masks much more comfortable for the wearer.

Furthermore, this 3-D printer has opened up the possibility for many other uses, including patient care. Because this machine can produce such structurally sturdy fabrications, our prosthetics and orthotics department can utilize this technology for prosthetic development. Our surgeons can also use the 3-D printer to create bone models of a patient to study and prepare for surgery.

Support through AmazonSmile

Did you know that you can support Shriners Hospitals for Children at no cost to you? It’s as easy as going to smile.amazon.com and selecting Shriners Hospitals for Children as your charitable organization of choice. Every time you shop, Amazon will donate a percentage of eligible purchases to our organization! It’s a simple way for you to support Shriners Hospitals for Children – with no cost to you!