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Every six months, Remington MacCullough travels from Esparto, Calif. to the Spina Bifida Clinic at Shriners Hospitals — Northern California in Sacramento and gets his ultrasound. He knows the drill. He knows the faces. They're the same faces that have followed and cared for him since he was an infant. “We have been going here since he was six months old. He gets an ultrasound. They look at the health of his kidneys and his bladder and then he goes to meet with his doctors and talk about the results,” said Chloe MacCullough, mother of Remington. It is the routine for many spina bifida patients in inland Northern California. For more than 25 years, UC Davis Children’s Hospital has partnered with Shriners Hospitals for Children — Northern California to serve children with spina bifida. The Spina Bifida Clinic, located across the street from UC Davis Children’s Hospital, is a unique collaboration in its region, blending the expertise of UC Davis with Shriners, including physicians, registered dietitians, physical and occupational therapists, and ultrasound technicians in a child-friendly facility.
uc davis health shriners hospital partner to provide expertise to spina bifida patients special editorial submitted by friends steward partner uc davis 42 connexions
It’s a place of support and healing for children with spina bifida, and since 2016 when the UC Davis Fetal Care and Treatment Center opened, it has been a place for children who have been treated with spina bifida in the womb. “I think our partnership offers children with the best of both worlds,” said Maya Evans, medical director of the Spina Bifida Clinic. She splits her time working with children in physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) at both facilities. “Our physicians come from PM&R, pediatric orthopaedics, pediatric neurology and pediatric urology. This arc that we offer provides a nice continuity of care for children who started with fetal surgery at UC Davis and takes them through adulthood.” Chloe MacCullough notes that the intimate setting at Shriners has been comforting and that the staff have been incredibly kind and patient. As for Remington’s doctors? “We meet Dr. Maya Evans each time and talk
