In 2010, when he was 15, Dr. Manuel "Manny" Gonzales was a sophomore in high school and a varsity cross-country runner when he received a stunning diagnosis: cancer. At that time, he underwent a grueling regimen to battle the disease: 10 rounds of chemotherapy, thirteen lumbar punctures, and countless hours spent in both the inpatient and outpatient settings of the hospital where he was being treated: Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware. His experience changed his life, creating a passion for becoming a pediatric oncologist. 

Dr. Gonzales shared his story on Episode 56 of the podcast. We've invited him back to check in on his health and career path as he completes his pediatric residency at Nemours and heads into a hematology/oncology fellowship. 

Dr. Gonzales was recently nominated as a Visionary of the Year Candidate for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. He is raising money to power innovative research for newer and safer therapies needed in pediatric oncology. Click here for more information on his campaign and to join his fundraising team.

Carol Vassar, producer

The season of rebirth, renewal, and growth is here: Spring. And for many, it brings with it thoughts of putting our hands in the soil and planting seeds or transplanting seedlings in gardens. That’s exactly what is happening right now on the Nemours Estate in Wilmington, Delaware. The Can Grow Garden is a collaboration between the estate and Nemours Children’s Hospital Delaware to grow plants and provide a place for patient, family, and associate education and respite. The grown plants - mainly vegetables - provide food for the community to help alleviate food insecurity and teach healthy cooking and eating.

Carol Vassar, producer

View the Can Grow Garden video here. 

For more information on the Can Grow Garden, contact Judy Lieberman

Nemours' Chief Well-being Officer Dr. Maureen Leffler provides an update on the well-being of the healthcare workforce, both nationally and at Nemours. We'll explore the burnout that is plaguing the healthcare workforce and what Nemours is doing to counteract that, get an update on the enterprise peer support program launched in 2020 and now open to all associates, and the newly created Nemours Center for Associate well-being. 

Well-being resources for Nemours associates.

Nemours' Employee Wellness Benefits

Carol Vassar, producer

As the pandemic was settling in on the world in 2020, a Nemours Children’s Hospital in Orlando resident was pondering a way to take her work out of the hospital and into the community. Her vision of well beyond medicine: a mobile clinic providing health care (and so much more) to underinsured or uninsured children and families in Greater Orlando. A fortuitous encounter with a Nemours grant writer yielded the seed money to make this resident’s dream a reality.

Featuring Nemours Associates Dr. Laura Chilcutt, Dr. Branden Trandai, and Gabe Krivenko.

Carol Vassar, producter

Ensuring the U.S. has a well-trained pediatric workforce is critical. Listen in as Dr. Larry Moss, President and CEO, Nemours Children’s Health, and Amy Knight, President of the Children’s Hospital Association, discuss Children’s Hospitals Graduate Medical Education funding. They offer policy recommendations to address the current pediatric workforce shortage, including a call to Congress to increase CHGME funding, reauthorization of the program, and more.

Carol Vassar, producer

On Mar. 2, 2023, the Lisa Dean Moseley Foundation of Wilmington, Delaware donated $78 million to dramatically expand Nemours' capacity to provide clinical care for children with cancer, sickle cell disease, and other blood disorders. Learn more about this donation, including how it happened, from William (Bill) Martin, President of the Lisa Dean Moseley Foundation, and Mark Mumford, Chief Operating Officer for Nemours Children's Health. 

Carol Vassar, producer

This episode features conversations about raising resilient kids based on the video series of the same name. It’s a partnership between Nemours Children’s Health and the Michael Phelps Foundation and features the most decorated Olympian of all time and his wife, Nicole, as your hosts. Together, they talk with Nemours experts about the world’s hardest job: being a parent. Nicole and Michael are the parents of three young sons and face the same concerns and challenges that all parents do when it comes to helping kids grow to be healthy, happy, and resilient. 

Learn more about the Michael Phelps Foundation

Carol Vassar, producer