Watch: News 12 report on lack of long-term pediatric care on L.I.
Karen Serva, whose young daughter needs round-the-clock medical care and lives far away from her family on Long Island, urged county legislators Thursday to do all they can to get a long-term pediatric care facility built somewhere on Long Island.
“This is a critical issue on Long Island, and it is wrong,” Ms. Serva said before a meeting of the Suffolk County Legislature’s health committee. “Parents should not be separated from their children, especially sick children like my daughter.”
News 12 Long Island cameras were rolling as Ms. Serva, and then her mother, spoke to the lawmakers.
Click here to see the News 12 report, which aired Thursday night.
The Thursday report comes as part of a News 12 series called “Too far from home.”
Ms. Serva and her family were first featured in a Jan. 12 News-Review cover story called “A sad plight for L.I. families.”
In Riverhead alone, two teenagers, Michael Hubbard and Rashad Jackson, had to be moved last year to the nearest hospital offering long-term care for children and young adults — Blythedale in Valhalla, N.Y. — after near-fatal accidents. Michael was severely burned in a gel candle accident and Rashad was hit by a car. Michael’s mother Nancy Reyer stays at the facility full-time rather than making daily trips from the East End.
EDITORIAL: SOMETHING MUST BE DONE FOR THESE FAMILIES
