Dear Group,

Christopher Hartnick, MD (who works with Robin Cotton, MD, in Cincinnati) has
put together a Pediatric Tracheostomy Quality of Life Questionnaire for
caregivers of children with tracheostomies. By completing this on-line
questionnaire you could help improve the quality of life for all children
with tracheostomies and their families. You will find the questionnaire on
Aaron's Tracheostomy Page at:
http://www.twinenterprises.com/trach/questions/

Below is an introduction from Dr. Hartnick. If you have any questions,
please feel free to e-mail me at cmbissell@... or Dr. Hartnick at
harq4k@...

Your participation is crucial and very much appreciated!

Sincerely,
Cynthia Bissell
Aaron's Tracheostomy Page
www.tracheostomy.com

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Greetings and thank you for your interest in the Pediatric Tracheostomy
Quality of Life Questionnaire. This questionnaire represents the work of
Pediatric Otolaryngologists, dedicated "airway" nurses, respiratory
therapists, and social workers, all of whom take care of children who have
undergone tracheostomies. Our hope is to create a questionnaire that
illuminates the particular concerns and problems that these children and
their families share and face every day. By developing such a questionnaire,
we aim to achieve several goals. First, we hope to be able to identify areas
within the field of pediatric airway disorders that need improvement, both in
terms of the care that children and their families receive in the hospital
and when they leave the hospital and return home. Second, we aim to create a
uniform voice representing the many families who have experienced frustration
with the daily trials that the care of a tracheostomy demands. The hope is
that a uniform voice would strengthen the demand for improved care such a
lobbying with the insurance companies for increased payments for home care
nursing and supplies. Finally, we aim to demonstrate to insurance companies
the true psychological, economic, and medical demands that a tracheostomy
places upon a child and his or her family, and to demonstrate the need for
continued coverage for airway reconstructive surgery.

To these ends, YOUR SUPPORT IS CRUCIAL! We are asking you to complete the
following questionnaire (please answer every question) so that we can
demonstrate that the results of the questionnaire speak to a large community
with common interests and concerns. If there are two parents/care-givers,
each can fill out the form separately as long as they don't talk about the
form while they are taking it. If you know someone caring for a child with a
trach who is not on-line, please print out a questionnaire for them. We
appreciate your time or effort. If you have any questions, comments, or
concerns, please feel free to contact us with your thoughts.

Thank you once again.
Christopher Hartnick MD
Department of Pediatric Otolaryngology
Children's Hospital Medical Center
Cincinnati, Ohio 45229
Email: harq4k@...