Hasbro Children’s Hospital names boy 2016 Rhode Island Champion

Dr. Arlet G. Kurkchubasche, center, has developed a special relationship with Kyrie White and his parents, Garrick and Nicole White, beyond the care she’s provided the young boy as his physician at Hasbro Children’s Hospital. Considered an honorary member of the White Family, she’s known affectionately as “Dr. K.” / COURTESY HASBRO CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL
Dr. Arlet G. Kurkchubasche, center, has developed a special relationship with Kyrie White and his parents, Garrick and Nicole White, beyond the care she’s provided the young boy as his physician at Hasbro Children’s Hospital. Considered an honorary member of the White Family, she’s known affectionately as “Dr. K.” / COURTESY HASBRO CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL

PROVIDENCE – Four-year-old Cranston native Kyrie White was named the 2016 Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals’ Rhode Island Champion for facing ongoing medical challenges with courage and strength.

After only 14 weeks into her pregnancy, Kyrie’s mother, Nicole White, learned her baby was diagnosed with gastroschisis, which caused his abdominal wall not to fully close. At birth a portion of White’s intestines and stomach were outside his body. He underwent surgery at 6 days old to remove a large portion of his small intestine and put in place a central line.

His mother said White, who spent three months in the hospital before being discharged to go home for the first time, hasn’t given up fighting this illness.

“It all comes back to how fortunate we are to have Hasbro Children’s [Hospital] in our own backyard and how unbelievable and supportive everyone has been throughout our entire journey – Kyrie’s caregivers have truly become like family,” she said.

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Dr. Arlet G. Kurkchubasche, White’s physician at Hasbro Children’s Hospital, said, “This is a boy who, despite his condition, greets every day with a big smile and considers our hospital his home away from home.”

At 4 years old, White has just begun to eat some foods orally and has professed a preference for french fries and birthday cake. However, he still relies on his feeding tube and central line for primary nutritional intake.

As the 2016 Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals’ Rhode Island Champion, White will spend the year as a pediatric ambassador, highlighting the work of Hasbro Children’s Hospital and the importance of donated funds for research, treatment and ongoing care. In June, he and his fellow champions from each state will travel to Washington to share their stories with a national audience.

Hasbro Children’s is a member of the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.

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