Pediatric Cardiology of Alaska, a Seattle Children's Clinic

06/26/2025

🚨 Join Seattle Children’s in Protecting Access to Care for Kids and Families Like Malachi’s 🚨

Medicaid is a lifeline for millions of children across the country. At Seattle Children’s, over 50% of patients rely on hashtag to access the care they need to help them live their healthiest most fulfilling life possible.

To ensure every child continues to have access to the care they need to thrive, Seattle Children’s is advocating to protect crucial funding which provides access to everything from routine check-ups to life-saving,specialized treatments for some of the most complex conditions.

📢 Your voice matters! Consider contacting your elected officials today to advocate for continued Medicaid funding and help Seattle Children’s continue to be here for every child and family who need us.

🔗 Learn more about the impact and how to take action: https://lnkd.in/gQf8uvNM

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09/05/2024

Experts at Seattle Children’s Sickle Cell Disease Program care for children with sickle cell disease, help them control pain and avoid serious complications from the disease. Watch this video to learn about sickle cell disease including care and treatment options. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzUQI1pfSt4&list=PLjvfRtcMhn4PVr4LSqNYQu4i7WGcB1a_S&index=2

08/21/2024

Help us congratulate this year’s Family Choice Award winners! Our winners were nominated by YOU and chosen for providing stellar family-centered care. Congrats to Jarrad Scarlett, MD, Kathleen Sie, MD, and Angela Wood, LMHC, ART, and the Seattle Children's Neurosurgery team.

03/14/2023

We are super-excited to have our very own Nursing Care Coordinator, Kaitlin Watt, featured in Seattle Children's InHouse publication. Thanks for all you do!

**Kaitlin Watt (she/her), RN care coordinator, Pediatric Cardiology of Alaska
“Kaitlin plays such an instrumental role for us at Pediatric Cardiology of Alaska. Her support for Alaska patients needing healthcare is unwavering, and her empathetic nature puts families at ease. Her work and presence are a vital part of our practice, and we are lucky to have her.” — Michelle McWilliams, clinic administrative supervisor

How long have you been at Children’s?
I joined Children’s in July 2008, right after graduating from nursing school. I began working in the Surgical Acute Care Unit, and then worked in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU) for 13 years. I transitioned into my current role in 2021.

Was it difficult to step away from the CICU after working there for so many years?
Yes, it was a hard decision to leave the wonderful CICU team, patients and families. But when I heard about this new position being created, it sounded like an exciting opportunity to stay within the Heart Center and still use my background in cardiology nursing. It also offered the opportunity to work from my home on Whidbey Island and spend more time with my family.

Tell me about your role.
I help support Alaska patient families who come to the hospital for cardiac surgery and procedures. Before they travel to Seattle, I meet with them virtually to go over what they can expect when they arrive and to answer any questions they have about being in the hospital. I keep a line of communication open with families while they are inpatient and after they are discharged and return to Alaska.

I also help with the logistics in getting families to and from Seattle by partnering with Guest Services and Social Work to make sure families have the transportation, food and lodging resources they need while they are in Seattle. I also help bridge any communication gaps between our Alaska and hospital care teams and regularly update the Alaska team on their patients’ progress in Seattle.

What guides you most in your work?
I deeply appreciate the opportunity to serve our Alaska Native families and to learn more about their culture, traditions and communities so that we can provide them with equitable, compassionate care.

It can be incredibly stressful and challenging for patients and families from Alaska to travel to Seattle for care. My goal is to make their experience just a little bit easier by helping them feel prepared and supported.

— Jenni Carson (she/her)
Published Feb. 28, 2023

09/27/2021

Perform cardiac ultrasound examinations and provide sonographer support for physicians and clinics. Duties may be performed in an operating room, ICU, lab, or other, on location at an assigned region. May also involve relationship building and sonographer training to other hospitals in the area.

09/19/2021

Abby reflects on the "happy heart day" of her daughter who had emergency open heart surgery a year ago.

“I don't remember much of that day but some parts are so vivid that I feel like I'm right back in the hallway lined with the nurses and doctors, some crying. One nurse held my hand as we walked down the makeshift aisle with our broken-hearted baby. We walked our daughter as far as we could, then leaned into her little bassinet and kissed her, over and over — we weren’t sure if she would make it, so every kiss counted. (There were never enough kisses.)

We slowly walked back to the waiting room. It seemed like time moved slower than usual, and watching the clock hands was enough to make me crazy. We were paged in the middle of the surgery, where we were told they found a second defect. We slipped away after that call to process the news, and we held onto each other in the elevator. We were silent.

That's as much as I remember until I saw her after the surgery. Her chest was still open, covered with a bandage, but we could see her heart beating under it. I was two weeks postpartum, exhausted, and I have a weak stomach anyway, so I got lightheaded at the sight of her open chest and had to sit — but that sight will forever be treasured. Her heart, now repaired perfectly, was an answer to prayer.

Now we celebrate. Happy Heart Day, my angel.”

📷: credit for the photo and story goes to the child’s mother Abby

06/12/2021

Greyson Ouellette was born with a serious heart defect called pulmonary atresia with intact ventricular septum, a condition where only half of the heart has formed. With the help from Seattle Children’s Prenatal Diagnosis and Treatment Program and Seattle Children's Heart Center, Greyson's is able...

06/07/2021

Elder Eula Acurunaq David passed away on May 29 at the age of 90. Originally from Scammon Bay, David was a worldly, culturally fluid and fluent woman who

04/24/2021

The Alaska Heart Run Rally is on!

02/07/2021

Nevaeh was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a rare and serious birth defect where the left side of the heart is not fully developed. A week after her birth, Nevaeh was transported to Seattle Children’s for her first surgery.
With Nevaeh’s second surgery scheduled for this month, her mom Sierra is apprehensive but hopeful knowing how strong her daughter has become. “If she can get through a heart surgery at just a few days old and continue to go through surgeries in her life, there’s not a thing that can stop her – she’s unstoppable.”

Nevaeh Landman was born with a rare and serious birth defect where the left side of her heart was not fully developed. Thanks to Seattle Children’s Heart Center surgeons, she has survived and is thriving.