Growing Up at Nationwide Children's: A Journey Toward Health

One night 14 years ago as Elizabeth Bibb put her daughter, Bethany, to sleep, she was overcome with fear. Her precious Bethany had stopped breathing.

After waking her daughter, Elizabeth immediately took the 3-year-old Bethany to her pediatrician, who sent them straight to Nationwide Children's Hospital. After close monitoring, Bethany was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. And what started as a quick trip to Nationwide Children's turned into a long journey toward a healthy life for Bethany.

In 2008, after 11 years of appointments, treatments and tests, 14-year-old Bethany's health began to deteriorate. She was spending more and more time in the hospital, which eventually led to a lobectomy on the upper right lobe of her lung.

"We were hoping this would help. But, really, it just bought Bethany more time," Elizabeth says.

Three years later, Bethany came to the Cystic Fibrosis Clinic at Nationwide Children's for a routine checkup and ended up being admitted for stomach and lung problems. After an unexpected stay in the hospital, Bethany was finally feeling better and was preparing to return home-but an allergic reaction sent her to the intensive care unit instead. After three weeks in the ICU battling sky-high carbon dioxide levels, Bethany thought she was finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. However, three days after being released, Bethany was admitted again for a blood infection.

The journey continued as Bethany's lungs began to fail. The only option was to place her on the lung transplant list. Doctors put Bethany on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), which lowered the carbon dioxide levels in her blood and prepared her for the transplant. Bethany is the first patient at Nationwide Children's Hospital to use ECMO as a bridge to a lung transplant.

As days passed in the ICU, Dr. Don Hayes, medical director of the Lung and Heart-Lung Transplant Program, and the incredible ICU team assisted in Bethany's care while keeping Elizabeth updated on Bethany's condition.

"If she fell asleep, I was scared that my Bethany would pass away," Elizabeth says.

Then, on Nov. 6, 2011, Bethany received nothing short of a miracle at Nationwide Children's-a double-lung transplant.

Throughout this incredibly difficult journey, Elizabeth kept a positive attitude.

"There is a reason for everything," Elizabeth says. "The team at Nationwide Children's is amazing. Bethany literally grew up with them-they're like family."

Today, Bethany is a healthy 17-year-old who is a member of the National Honor Society with plans to become a biochemist. She is active with her church and her high school marching band, as well as charity organizations and the Teen Advisory Committee at Nationwide Children's Hospital.

Bethany's future is bright, thanks to her incredible medical team at Nationwide Children's and the generosity of donors just like you who believe and invest in our mission.