by Sophie Skemp 

of the Gleaner

The Iowa Children’s Hospital has helped many families across the U.S. The hospital has especially made an impact on three students here at Wahlert. These students got the privilege to be treated by or greatly supported by the nurses and doctors.

Kate Hingtgen, ‘22, walked into the Iowa City Hospital being told she might have a form of cancer; however, she walked out fully recovered from a bad case of Mono. 

“I spent the night at the Iowa Children’s Hospital at age 13, and underwent many lab tests and x-rays for my liver,” said Hingtgen. 

Hingtgen said the most memorable part of her hospital visit was getting healthy enough to leave on the day of her brother’s graduation and making it into town to celebrate with her family. 

Another student who has received support from the Iowa Children’s Hospital is Hannah Krapl, ‘21. Krapfl witnessed her sister, Katie Krapfl(‘19) come and go from hospital to home for many years, while being her sister’s biggest cheerleader.

Hannah was only three months old when her family noticed Katie was quickly losing her hair and often becoming very tired.

“My sister’s recovery was about a mile long, but for the next few years, our family had to fight the cancer battle together,” said Hannah.

Even after recovering from Cancer, Katie underwent many check ups to secure her health.

“She would pick one sibling to go with her to Iowa City. There was often times much competition to see who got to go, but once we were there, all the doctors and nurses were so good to Katie,” said Hannah.

Hannah said witnessing her sister’s aftermath of Leukemia was very heartbreaking, but it tightened the unbreakable relationship with her and her family. 

She explained that even though she did not have the cancer herself, watching someone so close to her be affected by such a terrible illness was one of the hardest things she has ever done, and the support from the hospital was truly amazing.

“I got to observe the fantastic job every single person does there at the hospital, and it’s fantastic that they still bring this level of care to children every day,” said Hannah. 

Another student, Avery Fair, ‘20, suffered from scoliosis and was treated at the Iowa Children’s Hospital. Fair had a very eye-opening experience as a fifteen year old when she went under for back surgery to correct her scoliosis. 

“I was pretty nervous going into my surgery, but having the motivation and constant support from my doctors, friends and family was what helped me through it,” said Fair.

Even though she spent five days in the hospital, Fair found a love for the new atmosphere. She plans to help patients in the future just like her own doctors did, and because of her visits, the Iowa Children’s Hospital is the biggest motivator for her future career as a nurse.