Maryland Heights, Mo. (August 1, 2025) – This July, Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital introduced Adventure ReimaginED, the Midwest’s first known in-hospital camp for children with complex medical needs and their siblings.
The only hospital of its kind in Missouri and one of only a select few in the country, Ranken Jordan specializes in caring for children and their families with the most complex conditions, illnesses and injuries, bridging the gap between hospital and home. The hospital uses a unique care model, Care Beyond the Bedside, which encourages patients to get out of their hospital beds and heal through play.
Created and led by the hospital’s therapy team, Adventure ReimaginED was inspired by the success therapists were seeing from patients in group therapy, reaching milestones faster when they were with other kids.
Ranken Jordan therapists piloted the camp concept during winter break 2024 with 20 children. After positive results from patients and strong parent feedback, the team planned a larger summer camp with 55 kids for June 30-July 3, 2025.
Adventure ReimaginED included a series of 10 mini camps focused on a variety of activities like dance, golf, and arts and crafts as well as developmental skills like communication and feeding. Local partners also participated, with representatives from Missouri Botanical Garden hosting a nature camp and the team from McClure Engineering leading a science camp.
Siblings of patients were also invited, meeting a major gap in access for families who often face logistical and financial barriers to traditional camps.
“There are few camp options for children with complex medical issues and summer camps of all kinds can be expensive,” said Ranken Jordan’s Outpatient Therapy Manager, Erica Pfeiffer, who created the camp with occupational therapist Maggie Scott. “When we had the idea for the camp, we knew we wanted to invite siblings because it’s hard for parents with a medically complex child to find a place where their kids can go together and everything will be taken care of.”
Similar to the winter camp, the summer camp has seen positive results from parents and patients, like Harper Nichols, age 4.
“Before camp, Harper required a separate meal because of what she could eat and what she was willing to eat,” Pfeiffer said. “But I heard from her mom that the third day of camp was the first time Harper didn’t want a separate meal and she was willing to eat pizza with her family.”
Ranken Jordan Chief Nursing Officer Kristin LaRose said Adventure ReimaginED is an example of how Ranken Jordan delivers whole-child, family-centered care.
“At Ranken Jordan, we don’t just treat medical conditions, we focus on healing the child and the family,” LaRose said. “So many of our families think, ‘Summer camp is not an option for us.’ I am extremely proud of our therapy team for meeting an unmet need and I hope it inspires other pediatric therapists across the country to look for opportunities like this.”
Ranken Jordan offered Adventure ReimaginED to all campers free of charge, thanks to philanthropic support from the Costigan family in memory of Ed Costigan.
Adventure ReimaginED serves Ranken Jordan’s current patients and plans are underway to expand the camp in 2026 to include inpatient participants, in addition to outpatients.
To support Ranken Jordan’s work with medically complex children and their families, visit rankenjordanfoundation.org/donate.
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Media Contact: Haley Raymond, Leigh Walters Communications, HaleyR@lwcstrategies.com
Ranken Jordan
Ranken Jordan is a pediatric bridge hospital that cares for kids from birth to 21 who are well enough to leave a traditional hospital but need help before they go home. The only hospital of its kind in Missouri and one of only a select few in the country, Ranken Jordan specializes in caring for children and their families with the most complex conditions, illnesses and injuries, bridging the gap between hospital and home. The 60-bed hospital uses an innovative care model, Care Beyond the Bedside, which gets children out of their hospital rooms, activating the healing power of play. Located in the heart of the Midwest, Ranken Jordan serves patients from across the region at its state-of-the-art facility.
