Newstrack: Ronald McDonald family room cares for 1,000 families

Background

In January 2015, UnityPoint Health-St. Luke's Hospital and Ronald McDonald House Charities of Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois opened a Ronald McDonald Family Room to care for families whose children are being treated in the hospital's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit or Pediatric Unit.

The 1,200-square-foot family room includes three sleeping rooms, a kitchen, laundry room, living room space and two shower suites. Other amenities include a coffee-and-cookie cart and a family meal program.

The area is open for use 24 hours a day and is staffed between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m.

What's happened since

Since opening its doors on Jan. 27 of last year the family room has served more than 1,000 families, providing meals and a place to rest, said Jenny Bosking, the manager of the family room.

'The center of our programming is food,' she said.

The cabinet and refrigerator are stocked with breakfast and lunch foods, she explained, for families to eat as they please, while a hot dinner is served each night.

Bosking said staff or volunteers will prepare meals, in addition to businesses and groups such as 4H clubs and high school sports teams.

'Dinner is a busy time but a nice time,' Bosking said. 'Something is prepared for them and they don't have to do any cooking.

'I like to say that we're feeding the soul,' she added.

When plans were first announced, the hospital projected the room could serve up to 1,500 families. Bosking said there's certainly room to help more families in year two, adding if a day comes where there is a need for additional sleep rooms or shower suites, the hospital has the flexibility to add more services.

Over the summer, the family room started caring for families whose children were admitted into the psychiatric unit. It's a real need, Bosking said, as the state does not have enough inpatient beds, and families sometime will travel hundreds of miles for medical care.

Bosking said family rooms allow Ronald McDonald House to expand into communities that may not have a large children's hospital or research hospital as Iowa City does.

The family room's inaugural year gave Bosking — the only full-time employee — a chance to learn about when the room has higher use rates, as well, including Christmas. This year a volunteer came in over the holiday to help families decorate cookies, while another decorated the room and a local Hy-Vee catered a Christmas dinner.

In year two, Bosking said she'd love for more outside groups to provide dinners to the families receiving services.

'If you need your faith in humanity restored, come here,' she said.