RYANS CASE FOR SMILES

Description

Ryan’s Case for Smiles is the only organization solely dedicated to providing the emotional support to these families trying to cope with the traumatic stress of their child’s illness or injury. This is done primarily by delivering pillowcases to provide comfort to children in over 330 hospitals. Something so simple as a pillowcase not only brings color into the white and sterile hospital room, it addresses many of the symptoms of pediatric stress by providing distraction, choice and control, a sense of familiarity or connection, personal expression, and most importantly hope. Ryan’s Case for Smiles delivers over 200,000 pillowcases each year containing an insert card that alerts parents to the risk of PTSD and directs them to online resources for self-assessment, referrals, and evidence-based coping tools. The goal is to help families survive the emotional crisis of a child’s illness while building resiliency to minimize the symptoms of PTSD.