Emily Wilbur, Medical Coordinator, tells us about the Medical Department’s important role at Shiloh House.
When people first hear about Shiloh House, they probably don’t automatically think about the medical department, yet it’s an important department to consider when a child has separated from their families and transitioned into residential care. The medical department ensures all medical needs are taken care of for the youth served at Shiloh House. We manage medications for the youth we work with, provide transportation and support at primary care, dental, vision, and psychologist appointments, and are always ready to respond to urgent client health matters.
Youth often come to Shiloh House scared, uneasy, neglected, and feeling unloved. We’ve found that clients grow a special and unique bond with the Medical Team employees because of the time we spend with them taking them to doctor appointments. Our role is comparable to sit-in ‘mother hens’ because we help bring a sense of security and comfort to them as they get help meeting their health needs, especially in such a transitional time.
The Medical Team has celebrated a few accomplishments this past year at Shiloh: transitioning to an electronic medical record system, as well as obtaining a partnership with All Health Network for medication evaluations at our Family Resource Pavilion campus in Centennial. This has successfully bridged gaps in communication between departments internally, and medication management for clients in our respite program. We are developing and molding to fit the fast-paced growth that mental health care is experiencing nationwide. It’s important work that I’m proud to be a part of.