Nov. 29, 2023 By Iryna Shkurhan
St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children received a $92,000 grant to support locomotor training for children with spinal cord injuries and other neurological diagnoses at their hospital in Bayside.
The hospital’s innovative spinal cord approach helps children learn how to sit, stand and walk again by making gains in trunk control, functional mobility and independent ambulation to facilitate a better quality of life. This new funding will provide scholarships for eligible children to join the training program.
The grant was provided by the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation, the largest healthcare focused foundation in the state which works to eradicate health disparities for vulnerable New Yorkers. It’s not the first time they awarded a grant to St. Mary’s to support rehabilitative programs and long-term care services for children with life-limiting conditions.
“We are grateful to the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation for this grant, which will help our young patients with spinal cord injuries and other neurological diagnoses learn how to regain control of their bodies,” said Dr. Edwin Simpser, president and CEO of St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children. “Grants like this one help ensure that the unique programs at St. Mary’s are able to continue to change the lives of patients and their families.”
Their Locomotor Training Program is just one of three facilities across the country. The first training session at St. Mary’s was conducted in 2018. Today it serves up to seven patients each day, some who travel from other states to participate in the program.