Helping Adara Thrive After Trauma

Last year, Adara was counting the days until she would start a cheerleading program when an accident changed her life. One night she couldn’t sleep and found a lighter in another room. She started it and her shirt caught fire. “Adara was in flames,” recalls her mom, Rhonda. “We were in shock and frantically put them out.”

An ambulance rushed Adara to Children’s National Hospital. She suffered second- and third-degree burns on her chest, stomach, arm and back and was in the hospital for three weeks. The process to change her wound dressings was so painful she often had to be sedated. Adara underwent a skin graft surgery using healthy skin from her thighs.

Our Burn Unit’s psychosocial team eased the family’s worries and supported Adara’s recovery. A generous gift from Carrie and David Marriott expanded our Division of Trauma and Burn Surgery’s psychosocial team to care for children who experience severe injuries. The unit’s psychologist, social worker, care coordinator and postdoctoral psychology fellow provide comprehensive mental health services that help patients and families heal and thrive.

Adara received mental healthcare, books and crafts and enjoyed visits to our Bunny Mellon Healing Garden. Today, she is thriving. She attended the Mid-Atlantic Burn Camp in August with other young burn survivors.

“It’s important to raise awareness about these kinds of accidents since they do happen,” says Rhonda. “Thanks to Children’s National, Adara’s is a story of healing.”