Psychosocial Care Services Abroad with BobbiJo and Arash: Tbilisi, Georgia

by | Jun 4, 2022 | Other

“The trip was unbelievably meaningful in a variety of ways – connection, growth, understanding…to name a few.”-BobbiJo Pansier, MPH, CCLS, CTRS

In April, BobbiJo Pansier, MPH, CCLS, CTRS,  and Arash Babaoff, MD CTrop, Medical Advisor & Board Member, traveled to Tbilisi, Georgia to bring joy to children while working with dedicated hospital psychologists. Throughout that week abroad, both BobbiJo and Arash were able to see firsthand the impacts of Standish Foundation’s generous donors on the medical teams, psychosocial care teams and hospitals and their playrooms. While they were in Tbilisi they visited four hospitals with three large suitcases of toys and supplies to support the healthcare professionals they would be visiting.

By supporting child life and psychosocial care practices, Standish Foundation helps children remain children, even while in the hospital in the United States and internationally.

Thank you BobbiJo and Arash for their dedication to bringing the values and mission of Standish Foundation overseas to children in need.

Read below to hear about this impactful trip in their own words.

“The trip was unbelievably meaningful in a variety of ways – connection, growth, understanding…to name a few. I have gotten to know these incredible specialists on both a professional level and personal level over the years. We virtually navigated a pandemic together and had never met in person. Many of us have come and gone from jobs or role within pediatric healthcare, cared for loved ones that fell ill and became ill ourselves. I felt so connected to each of them since we virtually met in 2019 – to met them each in person in April for the first time after so many years of continued connection was an experience that was so meaningful it is hard to describe with words.
I have had the honor to work with all of the psychosocial care service specialists in Tbilisi, Georgia since 2019. Kasey Reinhardt, CCLS and I started a virtual fellowship program prior to the pandemic with several of the psychologist providing psychosocial care services within hospitals within the city. Can you image researching the best video meeting services to use? Now this is such a common form of regular communication. Since that time we have had 3 fellowship programs and have had the pleasure to collaborate with ALL the psychologists providing this service in Tbilisi. I feel so grateful to have been able to get to know each of the participants on a professional and personal level since 2019. In addition to the fellowship programs, I have provided support on a variety of projects over the years, including but not limited to service sustainability planning, development of policy/procedures and service guidelines, education modules for healthcare professionals and leadership development.”
–BobbiJo Pansier, MPH, CCLS, CTRS

This was my third visit to Tbilisi, Georgia with our psychosocial teams who work at four different hospitals. In the four days that we visited, BobbiJo Pansier and I bore witness to the Standish Foundation for Children’s efforts. A single successful model intervention in the emergency department four years ago has led to system-level changes at one of the prominent hospitals in the capital:  inclusion of parents during pediatric procedures, the production of topical analgesics to replace needles, and the use of an oral benzodiazepine to reduce anxiety pre-procedure. The ripple effect has been amazing. Our team has incited national level changes  that promote child and family-centered care in the Republic of Georgia.  We aspire to change the perception of medical care in Georgia.

-Arash Babaoff, MD CTrop, Medical Advisor & Board Member for Standish Foundation for Children