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'Brave Gowns' take the fear out of kids' medical appointments

The Southern Illinoisan - 5/6/2023

May 5—For a child facing life after a traumatic experience, even everyday situations can be scary. A trip to the doctor for a routine or specialized examination can be especially terrifying.

Practitioners and specialists at the Children's Medical and Mental Health Network in Anna have discovered a way to make children feel more comfortable — special medical examination gowns designed to instill bravery in even the youngest patients.

Abi Cowser-Barnett, medical social associate, with the program which is part of the Southern Illinois University Carbondale School of Medicine'sDepartment of Pediatrics, said the practice has been using specialized gowns, known as Brave Gowns, for more than a year. She said the special gowns make examinations a little less intimidating.

"We conduct specialized medical exams for children who have either experienced abuse or neglect or are at risk of experiencing abuse or neglect within the southern 45 counties of Illinois," Cowser-Barnett explained. "We use the 'Brave Gowns' when kids come to us and change into them for their actual medical appointments when they are seeing the doctor."

She said the gowns — unlike traditional medical exam gowns — are actually appealing to children. The gowns feature full coverage (no open backs), special access openings on both sleeves for IV access as well as openings for chest ports and heart monitors. But what makes the 'Brave Gowns' popular for toddlers through teens is the design. The gowns are designed to make the child look — and feel — like a hero.

"One of the most basic aspects of trauma is the lack of control and a kind of feeling of powerlessness that these kids have experienced. When they visit us, we want to give them back some choices and some power, so they actually get to choose which gown they want to wear and the gowns makes them feel brave and empowered for their appointment," Cowser-Barnett said. "That means they are more able to talk to us and complete the exam."

She said the agency has more than six dozen gowns in a variety of sizes and designs.

"They are very comfortable and we have a variety of designs," Cowser-Barnett explained. "We have ones that look like police officers or firefighters, we have athletes, dinosaurs, unicorns and superheroes. For our older kids in the teen and adult sizes, we have ones with empowering messages on them, things like 'Be Brave' or other inspirational words."

The gowns are extremely popular with clients — perhaps even too popular, she said.

"Before we had them, often the kids would not want to change into a medical gown for their appointment, but since implementing the 'Brave Gowns' they are so excited to get to pick which one they want to wear and they're often disappointed that they can't take them home with them," she added. "We've even had some who have changed into their regular clothes over their brave gowns. They adore them."

Even though the gowns are a little more expensive than traditional examination gowns, Cowser-Barnett said the comfort they bring to patients makes the expense worth it and she said she sings the gowns' praises to other agencies.

"Until we went looking for something like this, we didn't know these even existed," she said. "Now we try to share about them as much as possible because they are amazing for kids and they really help alleviate some of that fear from doctors' appointments."

les.odell@thesouthern.com

618-351-5078

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