NMCCL Transfer Center receives kits to help patients with special needs

Story by Petty Officer 2nd Class Justin Woods

Naval Medical Center Camp Lejeune

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. – The Transfer Center at Naval Medical Center Camp Lejeune (NMCCL) now have five specially-designed kits to help in transporting patients with special needs. The “Carter Kits” are part of a grant from North Carolina’s Office of Emergency Medical Services and are used to offer comfort to patients with spectrum disorders.

“I heard about the kits from the Southeastern Healthcare Coalition,” said Michael Pratt, emergency management department head for the medical center. “Onslow County Emergency Medical Services and Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune’s Fire and Emergency Services Division were receiving the kits. I thought we should get them as well to sustain the continuity, so I requested the kits for the medical center.”

According to the official Carter Kits website, the kits were designed by a police officer and a neuropsychologist who both have children with autism. The kits were developed after the officer identified a need to help special needs children in times of trauma and chaos at emergency scenes.

“Sometimes there are visual and language barriers during emergency situations, and the parents or guardians have other children and can’t ride with us,” said Paige Way, NMCCL Transfer Center division officer. “In those cases, the items in the kits will help with those challenges of the child being upset or confused by redirecting their attention and giving them something to focus on.”

The Carter Kits are a duffel bag filled with several items including a 24-piece sensory toy set, noise-reducing earmuffs, sunglasses, a weighted blanket, and a nonverbal communication tools among other items.

“Usually, parents are really good at letting the paramedics know what is beneficial for the child,” said Way. “We’ve all decided that if a patient is really into a specific item from the kit, then we’ll let them keep it because it might help at the receiving facility. Otherwise, we’ll heavily sanitize them for use with another transfer patient.”

Carter Kits aren’t just for children; autism can impact people of all ages on a spectrum of severity levels, and the kits can be used for any transfer patient.

“We mainly think of children, but there’s other patients these kits can assist too,” said Pratt. “Think about our geriatric community, the elderly community, who are dealing with mental decline. They can benefit from some of the items in these kits as well.”

As a transfer center for nearby level two trauma centers, the nearest of which is 64 miles away, Carter Kits will be an asset in calming and soothing special needs patient transfers.

“We have several patients on base that we have to transfer,” said Way. “Our transport team is made up of critical care paramedics, and they do everything from basic lifesaving care to critical care, all the way to severely critical care and abated patients. We believe these kits will be very helpful in assisting with our transfers.”

In the coming months, Pratt and the Transfer Center will be coordinating inter-facility training for first responders using the Carter Kits.