Rethinking Empathy and Trauma-Informed Care in Pediatrics
Healthcare moves fast. Decisions arrive in seconds. Clinical skills are essential. But when families are navigating fear, trauma, and uncertainty, the moments they remember most are often not the major medical milestones—they’re the “small” ones. A glance that conveys reassurance. A pause long enough to let you breathe. A moment when a clinician chooses humanity over hurry.
At the 2026 NRC Health Pediatric Collaborative, attendees will have the opportunity to explore these moments, and their profound impact, through the perspective of someone who has experienced healthcare from every dimension: Leslie Ridall, D.O., Medical Director of Patient-Family Experience at Children’s Hospital Colorado.
Her session, “When the Healer Needs Healing: Lessons from Both Sides of the Bedside About Empathy, Trauma, and the Power of Small Moments,” offers a deeply personal, deeply instructional look at how clinicians, leaders, and teams can reshape the ways they support patients and families.
A Perspective Few Clinicians Ever Gain
Dr. Ridall is a pediatric critical care physician who has stood on both sides of the bedside. She has cared for critically ill children, and she has been a patient navigating the system herself. Most poignantly, she has also been the parent of a newborn fighting for life.
These experiences revealed the blind spots that most clinicians and healthcare organizations never see clearly until they live them, including:
- How trauma interrupts comprehension
- How timing and emotional posture determine whether families hear what is being said
- How “routine” updates land very differently when someone is terrified
- How easily even well‑intended communication can overwhelm or miss the mark
- How profoundly practical burdens—childcare, work demands, finance—shape medical decision‑making
Because she has stood in all three roles, Dr. Ridall brings a level of empathy, clarity, and credibility that resonates deeply with teams striving to provide more human‑centered care.
About the Speaker: Leslie Ridall, D.O.
Dr. Ridall is the inaugural Medical Director of Patient-Family Experience at Children’s Hospital Colorado. Her leadership in patient experience is shaped not only by clinical expertise, but also by her profound personal journey through the healthcare system.
Her training includes:
- Medical Degree: Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
- Pediatric Residency: St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children
- Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship: Children’s Hospital Colorado
Today she serves as an attending physician and a champion of dignity, humanity, and meaningful communication.
Why “Small” Moments Aren’t Small at All
One of the most compelling themes of the session is the outsized impact of micro‑interactions—the subtle, often unconscious moments that can either build trust or create emotional distance.
Families may forget exact wording, medical terminology, or even the full sequence of events. But they always remember how a clinician made them feel.
Dr. Ridall’s stories illuminate how these brief interactions shape:
- A family’s sense of dignity
- Their ability to trust
- Their emotional safety
- Their level of overwhelm
- Their interpretation of medical decisions
- Their long‑term memories of care
Her message is clear: Care is not only clinical—it’s deeply interpersonal. And healing requires both.
The Clinician’s Journey: When Experience Becomes a Double‑Edged Sword
A second powerful dimension of this session is its exploration of the clinician’s experience—especially after returning to care for children with diagnoses similar to what her family endured.
For clinicians, lived experience can be:
- Healing—offering deeper empathy and connection
- Triggering—resurfacing fear and trauma in unexpected ways
- Transformative—permanently changing how they enter rooms and hold emotional space
Dr. Ridall speaks candidly about how these experiences shaped her own practice, from how she delivers news, to how she pauses, to how she calibrates tone and presence.
Her perspective is a reminder that clinicians need, and deserve, support for their emotional well‑being. When the healer is healing, the entire system must respond with compassion.
Why This Session Matters for Pediatric Leaders
Pediatric care is uniquely emotional, uniquely high‑stakes, and uniquely personal. Families enter these environments at some of the most vulnerable moments of their lives. And leaders play a critical role in building cultures that support both families and staff.
Attendees of this session will leave with:
- A clearer understanding of trauma‑informed communication. How fear shapes cognition, memory, and decision‑making, and how clinicians can adapt in real time.
- Awareness of how micro‑interactions shape the entire care journey. The subtle cues that can create safety, connection, and trust.
- Practical strategies leaders can implement immediately. How to shift communication patterns, strengthen team culture, and equip staff with tools to elevate humanity and empathy.
- A renewed sense of purpose and meaning. Stories that reconnect clinicians to why their work matters at a human level, not just a clinical one.
Join Us in Orlando, and Be Part of Shaping What Comes Next
The 2026 Pediatric Collaborative is a community of leaders driving the future of pediatric care. Join us March 25–26 in Orlando, Florida.
If you’re passionate about improving the patient and family experience, advancing equity, and learning from peers who are pushing the boundaries of innovation, you won’t want to miss this conversation.
