The Morgan Leary Vaughan Fund Receives Petit Family Foundation Grant in Support of Regional Conference on Necrotizing Enterocolitis

The Morgan Leary Vaughan Fund Receives Petit Family Foundation Grant in Support of Regional Conference on Necrotizing Enterocolitis
Naugatuck, CT, October 16, 2017 --(PR.com)-- The Morgan Leary Vaughan Fund (Morgan’s Fund) recently received a $4,000.00 grant from The Petit Family Foundation in support of the inaugural “Speaking of NEC: Unplugged” event, a one-day regional conference focused on identifying practical solutions for reducing the devastating effects of Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC) on premature infants and their families, to be held in Greater Hartford, Connecticut during the spring of 2018.

“On behalf of Morgan’s Fund, I want to thank Dr. Petit, The Petit Family Foundation, and their grants committee for continuing to not only support but also validate our advocacy efforts in NEC,” said Stephanie M. Vaughan, Co-founder and President, Morgan’s Fund.

“Speaking of NEC: Unplugged” will bring together relevant NEC experts (neonatologists, clinicians, and researchers) and influencers (parents, patient advocates, medical and nursing students, media, and policy makers) to engage and learn from each other’s experiences across the full continuum of NEC: its impact on patients and their parents, the cost to the hospitals that treat it, and the methods to improve both its short- and long-term outcomes.

The inaugural conference will feature an impressive line-up of speakers to provide practical education and to inspire community engagement and action in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of NEC. Proposed topics include:
• The parent’s perspective
• Rate of NEC—Current data on the national and local rates of NEC
• Impact of NEC on local communities—Presentations and discussions with elected/government officials and government relations individuals
• Clinical/Socio-economic burden of NEC—Clinical information and data on the long-term impacts of NEC on infants, their families, and society
• Inclusion of an Exclusive Human Milk Diet as the standard of care—Clinical information and data on the benefits of an exclusive human milk diet in the reduction of NEC, other diagnoses and co-morbidities, and healthcare costs.

The Greater Hartford area is centrally located between Boston and New York City. The ten largest cities in New England and New York City are within approximately two hours driving distance (or 100-mile radius)—and encompass ten of the United States Neonatal-Perinatal Training Program Centers including Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, and Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital; plus, more than 50 medical and nursing schools.

The Morgan Leary Vaughan Fund appreciates the support of Prolacta Bioscience and The Petit Family Foundation for this important event and welcomes other experts, influencers, and sponsors who share our mutual mission.

For more information, visit morgansfund.org

About The Morgan Leary Vaughan Fund
The Morgan Leary Vaughan Fund emerged from a need to establish a mechanism for:
• Disseminating credible and timely information about Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC) to parents whose infants are most at risk for developing NEC
• Raising the level of public awareness about NEC and the potentially devastating effects it can have on infants and their families
• Advancing research to prevent, diagnose, treat, and ultimately, cure NEC.

Currently, it is headquartered in Naugatuck, Connecticut with a satellite office in Austin, Texas.

Background
NEC is a rare disease that leads to necrosis (death) of the intestine. It is predominately due to prematurity and its statistics are startling:
• NEC is the second leading cause of death in premature infants
• NEC affects about 9,000 of the 480,000 infants born preterm each year in the United States
• For very low birth weight babies, who weigh less than 3 lbs, the chance of developing NEC is approximately 1 in 14
• All newborn infants born preterm or born with a low birth weight (less than 5.5 pounds) are at increased risk for NEC. The smaller the infant or the more premature the delivery, the greater the risk.
(Sources: UC Davis Health System and NICHD.)

About The Petit Family Foundation
The Petit Family Foundation honors the memories of Jennifer Hawke-Petit, Hayley Elizabeth Petit and Michaela Rose Petit by continuing the kindness, idealism and activism that defined their lives. The Foundation’s funds are given to foster the education of young people, especially women in the sciences; to improve the lives of those affected by chronic illnesses; and to support efforts to protect and help those affected by violence.
Contact
The Morgan Leary Vaughan Fund, Inc.
Stephanie M. Vaughan
203-606-4873
www.morgansfund.org
ContactContact
Categories