An 11-year-old Michigan girl, Reese Partlow, who courageously deals with the challenges of a rare disease, has inspired a hefty $7.5 million donation to the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital. The gift from the Wayne and Joan Webber Foundation will bolster the hospital's technology-based care and increase social work services for children with complex medical conditions.
The grandniece of Wayne and Joan Webber, Reese has been in and out of the hospital since she was diagnosed with mucolipidosis type II disease, also known as I-cell disease. She first arrived at C.S. Mott when she was just seven weeks old with a heart condition, and since then, has faced a series of surgeries and health hurdles that have required frequent specialist attention. Despite the gravity of her condition, which can often be fatal in early childhood, according to Click on Detroit, Reese has met each challenge with remarkable resilience and a loving demeanor that has captured the hearts of her family and care providers alike.
Reese's grandmother, Cynthia Webber Helisek, manages the foundation and aims to ensure that the donation would make a significant impact to improve the healthcare experience for young patients. "The use of virtual visits, monitoring devices, and other tools was growing before the COVID-19 pandemic, but that experience really showed how these resources could transform care for the kids who need it most," said Dr. John Charpie, division director of pediatric cardiology at the University of Michigan, as reported by the Department of Pediatrics.
A significant portion of the funds will go toward the Wayne and Joan Webber Little Victors Virtual Care Congenital Heart Fund, which will support advanced technology such as wearable devices and virtual therapies, and could decrease the necessity for patients and families to make trips to the hospital. Another segment of the donation will establish the Reese Partlow Social Worker in Genetic Counseling Fund to assist families grappling with the shock and challenges of complex genetic diagnoses, according to MLive.
Further demonstrating the wide-reaching impact of her story, the hospital's Pediatric Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit will be named the Reese Partlow PCTU in her honor. "It’s so cool to see how people love Reese so much," her mother, Leslie Partlow, told Click on Detroit. "And she loves everyone — she just wants someone to play with her all the time, and she has a great, subtle sense of humor."
