St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital Gives Patients a Prom of their Very Own

Pediatric patients spend a magical evening celebrating the important rite of passage that every teen should have, no matter how sick.

Prom season is underway throughout the United States, and inside the walls of St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital. More than 50 pediatric patients dressed up in fancy gowns and handsome tuxedo jackets and took part in their own Arabian Nights-themed prom night held at the hospital Friday, May 3, 2013. Like all proms, the special evening included a mix of music, dancing, refreshments, keepsake photos and memories that are sure to last a lifetime.  

Children with chronic or life-threatening conditions sometimes miss or have to delay traditional childhood rituals, such as playing a team sport, slumber parties, learning to drive and participating in high school dances. Child Life Specialists at St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital organize special events, like prom, in an effort to provide patients with experiences that they might not otherwise have due to treatment and hospitalization.

And because no child should have to miss prom because of an illness or injury, St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital did not limit the prom to just high school patients.

"For some seriously ill pediatric patients, this prom may have been a once in a lifetime opportunity,” said Kelly Outlaw, child life supervisor at St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital. “We think it’s a night that every child should have, no matter how sick, which is why we gave all of our patients a chance to go to prom now.”

To see photos from St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital’s prom, visit facebook.com/stjosephschildrens.