Senior Career Physician Winner:
Julie Hauer, MD, Division of General Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital,
Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School. Dr Hauer has been committed for 28 years to the rare population of children with disorders of the central nervous system who have multiple co-morbidities, resulting in complex medical care and decision-making. Her expertise includes symptom treatment for chronic pain, feeding intolerance, and dyspnea, which factors in mechanisms of symptom generation specific to this population. Dr Hauer developed medical content for NeuroJourney at Courageous Parents Network, a team effort that included editing by parent experts. She is currently focused on a framework of naming and framing problems without cure due to the impaired nervous system that can result in insidious changes in health and quality of life, a framework to aid iterative decision-making and end-of-life care. Dr Hauer’s driving philosophy is that children with impairment of the brain are not defined only by problems – we should strive to see their abilities that include meaningful activities and relationships, and believe what parent’s share, as we also actively consider the impact that their condition can have on this life filled with meaning.