Families upset over closure of Tufts Children’s Hospital

BOSTON — Samantha Saperstein’s son Mason was born with Treacher Collins syndrome, which is a malformation of the facial bones.

He relies on a trach to breathe, a gastrostomy tube (also known as a G-tube) to eat and will need many surgeries in the coming years.

Just last week Mason had his 6th and 7th procedures done at Tufts Children’s Hospital to help close his cleft palate.

“This surgery is going to hopefully be able to let him eat through his mouth or at least we can teach him to eat through his mouth,” said Samantha Saperstein.

Saperstein says they chose Tufts Children’s Hospital for his care since they take care of fewer patients and offer a more intimate setting, but last week when she learned the hospital will be closing its pediatric services, Saperstein says she was devastated.

“I was in pure shock,” she said.

Her family will need to find Mason specialized care elsewhere now.

Mason – who turns two in March - already has 12 specialists at Tufts.

“It’s already hard enough when you have that many people involved in his care,” said Saperstein. “I’m so scared about losing any members of his team who’ve been treating him since he was 23 days old.”

Many other families are also disappointed.

There’s a petition online with more than 20,000 signatures pushing for the children’s hospital at Tufts to stay open.

“I don’t understand why Tufts is closing its doors when they give such amazing and outstanding care to children,” said Saperstein. “I feel like the people that are losing the most here are the kids.”

A Tufts Medical Center spokesperson says they’re working closely with Boston Children’s Hospital to transfer all of their pediatric patients there. Tufts says its converting its 41 pediatric beds into ICU beds for adults as the number of critically ill adults rises.

Families upset over closure of Tufts Children’s Hospital

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