Inside the RMH-NY Montefiore Einstein Family Room
For families navigating pediatric medical care, every day can feel heavy with worry, long appointments, and emotional uncertainty. At Ronald McDonald House New York (RMH-NY), the mission is to lighten that burden through compassionate care and family-centered support. This mission comes alive in the Ronald McDonald Family Room at Montefiore Einstein Hospital in the Bronx—a space offering practical resources, emotional support, and moments of joy for families whose children receive care at the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM).
At the heart of the family room is Adnan Kandic, Family Room Coordinator, who works alongside RMH-NY staff and volunteers to ensure families feel supported from the moment they arrive. Open 24/7, the Family Room provides a restful space for caregivers, a lounge with a television, a play area for siblings, a kitchenette and snacks, laundry facilities, and quiet spaces to rest. It serves families of children on CHAM’s 6th, 8th, 9th, and 10th floors, no matter the length of their child’s hospital stay.
A Space That Anticipates Needs
Families caring for children with complex conditions, including pediatric cancer, face unique logistical and emotional challenges. Being steps away from the hospital allows caregivers to attend to their own well-being while remaining near their child. Adnan and the team ensure the room’s amenities meet these needs, combining practical support with a warm, empathetic environment.
Recliners for Caregivers
A room to rest that is full of recliners provides a safe, quiet place for parents and caregivers to rest only steps away from the hospital, sustaining emotional resilience during long visits. Adnan’s team keeps them consistently comfortable and inviting.
Play Areas for Siblings
A sibling can experience stress when the other is in treatment. The Family Room’s play space provides engagement and distraction, letting children feel included while parents focus on their hospitalized child.
Kitchenette and Laundry Facilities
A kitchenette with snacks and beverages, and an on-site laundry facility allows families to manage daily tasks without leaving the hospital, reducing stress and supporting the family unit. Staff and volunteers ensure these resources remain accessible and functional at all times.
A Space That Became an Art Gallery
The Montefiore Family Room is also a place for creativity, expression, and emotional healing. RMH-NY hosts Paint & Sip events that transform the room into a temporary art studio. Families paint for themselves, their children, and over time, leave canvases behind as gifts to brighten the room. The team ensures supplies are readily available and activities are easy to engage with, helping families find joy and meaningful connection.
How Paint and Sip Works
When families first began painting in the room, many would start by creating art for their own child. But as they returned, they began leaving behind vibrant, colorful pieces specifically for the Family Room. Initially, staff assumed these were forgotten items, only to be met with smiles and statements like, “No, I painted this for the room,” or “The painting is meant for you [the Family Room].” These contributions quickly transformed the space into a growing gallery of gratitude, hope, and shared creativity.
A Family of Artists
A recent example of this was a lovely mother and her son, who have become regular visitors to the Montefiore Family Room. Each visit, Mom stays by her son’s side, whether they are enjoying a smoothie in the living room, playing in the playroom, or painting together. Their collaborative art pieces are left as gifts for the room, adding to the collection of masterpieces that brighten the space. Mom also shares her son’s past projects and artwork, offering the staff a window into his excellence, his creativity, and his growth.
The room has become such a highlight of their visits that the boy asks to stop by even after appointments at CHAM, and when they can’t, the family reassures him that their next visit will include a trip to the Family Room.
Stories like theirs illustrate how the room not only provides practical and emotional support but fosters a genuine sense of belonging.
Building Community Inside the Hospital
The Family Room fosters a micro-community where families, volunteers, and staff connect and support one another.
RMH-NY staff and volunteers provide guidance and emotional support. Under Adnan’s coordination, volunteers are trained to anticipate family needs and provide consistent, compassionate care. The relationships formed in the room—through shared activities, meals, and creative projects like painting—enhance emotional support and reinforce family-centered care.
Peer Support for Families and Siblings
Families meet one another while using the room, allowing parents to connect with others navigating similar challenges and siblings to interact with peers, reinforcing emotional support and family-centered care.
The Montefiore Family Room embodies RMH-NY’s commitment to health equity, providing Bronx families direct access to supportive resources within the hospital.
Accessibility for All Families
Situated across the street from CHAM, the room addresses transportation and time barriers, ensuring equitable access to both emotional and practical support. The RMH-NY team coordinates operations so families can use the space whenever needed.
Partnering with a Leader in Pediatric Care
Montefiore’s pediatric oncology division offers comprehensive treatment, including early-phase clinical trials and cutting-edge therapies. Integrating the Family Room ensures families benefit from both medical excellence and holistic care, demonstrating how healthcare innovations can be complemented by emotional and social support systems—a model Adnan and the team implement daily.
Small Gestures, Big Impact
Every detail—from restful spaces to art supplies—improves families’ daily lives. Laundry facilities, snacks, and lounge areas reduce stress, while more restful spaces support physical and emotional resilience. Programs like Paint & Sip offer opportunities for self-expression and shared creativity. The growing art collection, enhanced by families just like the one in our story, transforms the room into a space reflecting the experiences, gratitude, and hope of those who visit, keeping the environment dynamic, welcoming, and inspiring.
Integrating Compassionate Care into Healthcare Innovation
The Family Room demonstrates that healthcare innovation extends beyond clinical advancements to include emotional and practical support for families. By embedding RMH-NY staff and volunteers within the hospital, families access support seamlessly alongside their child’s medical treatment. The room addresses emotional, social, and logistical needs, creating a model where family-centered care coexists with advanced pediatric care.
Looking Ahead: Expanding Access and Support
The Family Room is part of RMH-NY’s broader strategy to expand family-centered care across New York City hospital partnerships, reaching more families and addressing social determinants of health. Every new space builds on lessons learned at Montefiore, embedding compassionate care and reducing health disparities.
The Value of Belonging
Families visiting the Family Room experience more than convenience—they experience a sense of community. Siblings play safely, caregivers rest, and children enjoy moments of normalcy amid treatment. Artwork, shared activities, and everyday interactions foster connection among families, staff, and volunteers, with the RMH-NY team ensuring these bonds are nurtured, maintaining the room as a living example of family-centered support.
Supporting Families Through Action
The Montefiore Family Room demonstrates how compassionate care improves outcomes for pediatric patients and their families. Donors, volunteers, and community partners sustain these efforts, while the team coordinates operations to ensure families have access to all things comfort, creativity, and connection during some of their most challenging moments.
A Living Model of Family-Centered Care
The Family Room serves as a model for integrating holistic care into high-acuity medical environments. Families navigating pediatric cancer or serious illness access support, reassurance, and moments of joy just steps from their child’s treatment. By combining practical resources with emotional support, RMH-NY exemplifies leadership in family-centered care and health equity, with RMH-NY staff guiding operations to meet families’ needs consistently.
Learn more about RMH-NY’s family-centered programs and how to support compassionate care for families in New York City: www.rmh-newyork.org
A gorgeous sunset over the Bronx, looking out from the Ronald McDonald Family Room at Montefiore Einstein.
