Meet the 2020 Scholars

"What do you believe is the greatest unaddressed patient need in the CF community, and if you could, how would you try to fix it? Who would you partner with (e.g. public figure, organization) to help fix the issue and why?"

I believe transitioning from pediatric care to adult care is one of the most underrated CF issues. It comes at a time of great stress and vulnerability in a teenager's life. Change is hard for everyone; however, no one knows the stress of CF patients as they have to walk away from the doctors who have treated them since birth, start a new school, and possibly move out all at the same time. The instability of multiple major life changes can be overwhelming. Because of my experiences, I spoke with the pediatric and adult doctors, social workers, and nurses about this issue and ideas to make the transition easier. The obvious fix would be to partner with the CF clinic team to change the mandatory transition age to adult care in my state from 18 to 21. This would allow the CF patients to have stable medical care as they work through major life changes associated with entering adulthood. It would help set CF patients up for success as they embark on their journey of higher education without the worry of needing health care at new offices with new doctors.