Scoliosis Surgery for Molly: Do you have her back?
Donation protected
Molly
Before we tell you about our journey with scoliosis, we want you to know who Molly is. Molly is is a fourteen year-old who loves the outdoors and enjoys hiking, fishing and hunting. She likes to run, swim, play piano, and sing. From the time she was little she has always been active and loves learning. Her favorite thing to do in the summer is attend church camps, retreats, and reunions. Most people that know her would agree she is energetic and always on the move to do something or get involved. To many, she’s your average teenager and at first glance you’d never think there was anything that was wrong.
The Diagnosis
Two years ago her pediatrician suggested we see an orthopedic surgeon after a routine physical. Her pediatrician printed out the slight curve he noticed, but we still didn’t think it was that big of a deal until we saw the first X-ray. After getting two different medical opinions, both stated that Molly would most likely need to have surgery, but there was a possibility that her curve could be kept from getting worse with the wearing of a brace. As you can imagine for any 7th grader, this was something that Molly was not comfortable with, and even embarrassed by at first, but the idea of surgery scared her enough to know she needed to try it. After just six months of wearing the brace her curve had still increased so much that the doctors said there was no point in continuing to brace it. With that we were given the option of surgery or to continue and monitor it as she matured. At that point she did not have much pain and other than on the X-ray it still was not noticeable just glancing at her. As most parents can imagine, making a decision like this did not come lightly and we decided to wait and pray for a miracle. We still believe God can do whatever he wants, but we also know that how God performs miracles is not always as we think it should be and often it’s hindsight that proves to us God always answer prayers.
The Decision for Surgery
Molly has gone through x-rays and exams every few months and is now done growing according to a bone scan. The decision for surgery has to be made. The biggest thing that has kept us from surgery was to have to see our little girl not be able to do all the things she loves. Up until a few months ago we had only been told about one option for surgery, which was to put two rods all the way down either side of her spine. This is the most common and traditional method to treating scoliosis, but also greatly limits how they can move and what they can do the rest of their lives. As we spoke to numerous people they often asked “Isn’t there a better way?” We asked ourselves that numerous times too because we felt the spine should be allowed to move more freely. We told her doctor that this was a big concern for us. At her appointment in September, the doctor told us about another option called Anterior Scoliosis Correction. This is a non-fusion, motion preserving procedure that in short works like braces do to straighten teeth. Screws are inserted between each vertebrae and attach with bands. The recovery is shorter and she would still have the range of motion to move freely and continue playing sports. It sounded like the option we thought best fit Molly, but the next obstacle would be the cost.
Costs for Surgery
Because this is still a fairly new process, there are only two places in the U.S. that do the surgery. Our doctor referred us to the one in New York because the doctor there has done more surgeries and has a higher success rate. We figured we could handle the costs of traveling, the ten days in a hotel room and food for whichever parent would be there with Molly because we thought we had good insurance that would pay for most of the surgery.
What we didn’t realize until after several conversations and consultations with the doctor was that the surgeons themselves do not participate with insurance. Molly needs a complex double correction, with each of the two surgeons bills at approximately $225,000.00. However, there is a global capped rate so the maximum we will be charged is $70,000.00, of which $40,000 has to be paid up front before the surgery and the rest within 4 months after. We would like to schedule the surgery for March.
This $70,000 is not all of the costs either as we will still be billed by the hospital itself for the x-rays and scans before and after, the anesthesiologist and the length of hospital stay. Those will be billed to our insurance at the 60/40 rate because it is considered out of network.
Seeing these numbers at first shocked us, but the more we discussed it the more we felt we needed to try and go this route for Molly’s sake. We felt like we couldn’t let the dollar amount deter us from making a decision that she would have to live with the rest of her life.
Any Help is Appreciated
We have been fortunate enough to not have had to ask for much help before, and when the first suggestion was made to start a Go Fund Me page we didn’t want to do it. However, we were reminded that there are strength in numbers and sometimes asking for help humbles us and shows us we don’t have to bear our burdens alone.
Even if you cannot give monetarily, please feel free to pass this on or post elsewhere so others will see it. Our hope is that this will reach many who will send prayers on Molly’s behalf that this be made possible. We know with God on our side “nothing is impossible”.
Thanks to All
Scriptures tell us to "count it all joy" and at times like these it can sometimes be difficult. This may seem like a sad story, but there is still much to be thankful for. We are so thankful to have Molly as our daughter and that the Lord blessed her with a positive attitude despite her pain. We are thankful that it was caught early enough to be able to monitor the progression and understand fully the options we had. We are thankful we had doctors who worked with us and understood our desires for Molly, making referrals based upon her needs. And we are thankful that we can reach out to so many people on a platform like this.
No one likes to see a child in pain or in need, but we hope Molly will walk away from this being able to not only stand tall, but stand and testify of God’s goodness and love for her. We leave it in His hands.
“And I said this is my infirmity; but I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High. I will remember the works of the Lord; surely I will remember thy wonders of old. I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of all thy doings. Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary; who is so great a God as our God?”
Psalms 77:10-13
Before we tell you about our journey with scoliosis, we want you to know who Molly is. Molly is is a fourteen year-old who loves the outdoors and enjoys hiking, fishing and hunting. She likes to run, swim, play piano, and sing. From the time she was little she has always been active and loves learning. Her favorite thing to do in the summer is attend church camps, retreats, and reunions. Most people that know her would agree she is energetic and always on the move to do something or get involved. To many, she’s your average teenager and at first glance you’d never think there was anything that was wrong.
The Diagnosis
Two years ago her pediatrician suggested we see an orthopedic surgeon after a routine physical. Her pediatrician printed out the slight curve he noticed, but we still didn’t think it was that big of a deal until we saw the first X-ray. After getting two different medical opinions, both stated that Molly would most likely need to have surgery, but there was a possibility that her curve could be kept from getting worse with the wearing of a brace. As you can imagine for any 7th grader, this was something that Molly was not comfortable with, and even embarrassed by at first, but the idea of surgery scared her enough to know she needed to try it. After just six months of wearing the brace her curve had still increased so much that the doctors said there was no point in continuing to brace it. With that we were given the option of surgery or to continue and monitor it as she matured. At that point she did not have much pain and other than on the X-ray it still was not noticeable just glancing at her. As most parents can imagine, making a decision like this did not come lightly and we decided to wait and pray for a miracle. We still believe God can do whatever he wants, but we also know that how God performs miracles is not always as we think it should be and often it’s hindsight that proves to us God always answer prayers.
The Decision for Surgery
Molly has gone through x-rays and exams every few months and is now done growing according to a bone scan. The decision for surgery has to be made. The biggest thing that has kept us from surgery was to have to see our little girl not be able to do all the things she loves. Up until a few months ago we had only been told about one option for surgery, which was to put two rods all the way down either side of her spine. This is the most common and traditional method to treating scoliosis, but also greatly limits how they can move and what they can do the rest of their lives. As we spoke to numerous people they often asked “Isn’t there a better way?” We asked ourselves that numerous times too because we felt the spine should be allowed to move more freely. We told her doctor that this was a big concern for us. At her appointment in September, the doctor told us about another option called Anterior Scoliosis Correction. This is a non-fusion, motion preserving procedure that in short works like braces do to straighten teeth. Screws are inserted between each vertebrae and attach with bands. The recovery is shorter and she would still have the range of motion to move freely and continue playing sports. It sounded like the option we thought best fit Molly, but the next obstacle would be the cost.
Costs for Surgery
Because this is still a fairly new process, there are only two places in the U.S. that do the surgery. Our doctor referred us to the one in New York because the doctor there has done more surgeries and has a higher success rate. We figured we could handle the costs of traveling, the ten days in a hotel room and food for whichever parent would be there with Molly because we thought we had good insurance that would pay for most of the surgery.
What we didn’t realize until after several conversations and consultations with the doctor was that the surgeons themselves do not participate with insurance. Molly needs a complex double correction, with each of the two surgeons bills at approximately $225,000.00. However, there is a global capped rate so the maximum we will be charged is $70,000.00, of which $40,000 has to be paid up front before the surgery and the rest within 4 months after. We would like to schedule the surgery for March.
This $70,000 is not all of the costs either as we will still be billed by the hospital itself for the x-rays and scans before and after, the anesthesiologist and the length of hospital stay. Those will be billed to our insurance at the 60/40 rate because it is considered out of network.
Seeing these numbers at first shocked us, but the more we discussed it the more we felt we needed to try and go this route for Molly’s sake. We felt like we couldn’t let the dollar amount deter us from making a decision that she would have to live with the rest of her life.
Any Help is Appreciated
We have been fortunate enough to not have had to ask for much help before, and when the first suggestion was made to start a Go Fund Me page we didn’t want to do it. However, we were reminded that there are strength in numbers and sometimes asking for help humbles us and shows us we don’t have to bear our burdens alone.
Even if you cannot give monetarily, please feel free to pass this on or post elsewhere so others will see it. Our hope is that this will reach many who will send prayers on Molly’s behalf that this be made possible. We know with God on our side “nothing is impossible”.
Thanks to All
Scriptures tell us to "count it all joy" and at times like these it can sometimes be difficult. This may seem like a sad story, but there is still much to be thankful for. We are so thankful to have Molly as our daughter and that the Lord blessed her with a positive attitude despite her pain. We are thankful that it was caught early enough to be able to monitor the progression and understand fully the options we had. We are thankful we had doctors who worked with us and understood our desires for Molly, making referrals based upon her needs. And we are thankful that we can reach out to so many people on a platform like this.
No one likes to see a child in pain or in need, but we hope Molly will walk away from this being able to not only stand tall, but stand and testify of God’s goodness and love for her. We leave it in His hands.
“And I said this is my infirmity; but I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High. I will remember the works of the Lord; surely I will remember thy wonders of old. I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of all thy doings. Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary; who is so great a God as our God?”
Psalms 77:10-13
Organizer
Amy Burk
Organizer
Omaha, NE
Inspired to help? Start a fundraiser for someone you know
