A sick newborn is a parent’s worst nightmare.

It’s something Patrice Briggs of Maple Valley knows well, both as a parent and as an employee of Children’s Therapy Center in Kent, which serves families throughout King County including Covington and Maple Valley.

In 1990 Briggs gave birth to her son Bobby, who was immediately diagnosed with a diaphragmatic hernia, a defect in the diaphragm which allows the abdominal contents to move into the chest cavity. Though the hernia was repaired, one of Bobby’s lungs was underdeveloped, requiring him to be hospitalized until he was 6 months old.

According to Briggs, he also had low muscle tone, chronic lung disease and could not tolerate anything near his mouth.

He was so fragile that two therapists from Children’s Therapy Center in Kent had to visit him in his home. Slowly, they were able to increase his muscle tone and help him eat. When he was 2, he was finally able to go to the Therapy Center for thereapy.

At 4 he was healthy and no longer needed the services.

Now, 20 years later, Briggs works in the development department at the Children’s Therapy Center (CTC).

“I wanted to work for a company that would make a difference,” she said. “It (CTC) has made a difference in children. This is a place to go for kids who need services.”

Located on Kent Kangley Road, CTC also has facilities in Tacoma and Burien. The Kent facility employs 95 people, 65 of which are therapists. Last year, roughly 2,000 children were treated by CTC, and the demand is growing. According to Briggs, they currently have a waiting list with 300 children on it.

CTC, a part of Dynamic Family Services, is a place designed with children in mind. This is evident in the hallway, where toys are installed along the wall and on the floors for children to play with as they wait for their appointments. Paintings on the wall depict dragon flies and meadows. Areas have names such as Cricket Creek, Raccoon Room and Turtle Town. The rooms are brightly colored, unlike the sterilized white found in a doctor’s office.

“It’s very kid oriented,” Briggs said. “It’s a very different feeling here.”

The type of children who come to CTC for therapy suffer from a long list of disorders or disabilities, mental or physical, such as autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy or failure to thrive.

The term “failure to thrive,” Briggs explained, is when an infant is not growing, and there is no apparent reason for it.

A significant problem CTC deals with are children who have difficult eating for a variety of reasons.

They may have an adverse reaction to the texture or shape. A child who has been required to use a ventilator may have an aversion to anything going into their throat.

“It can be very intrusive,” Briggs said. “You have to grow and you can’t grow if you don’t eat.”

One of the ways CTC helps youngsters adjust is by group participating. A group of children will sit together where the social interaction can help alleviate nervousness. The therapists also let them make their own food, such as smoothies, which allows them to be creative.

Additionally, CTC offers services for children who have difficulties speaking. Speech therapists train them with flash cards.

Or, if a child has physical disabilities, fitness rooms are available, where therapists use climbing walls, medicine balls and specially designed machines to help strengthen various muscles in the child’s body.

A consistent theme which runs through CTC’s programs is an emphasis on parental involvement in the child’s progress. Rather than leave their child with the therapist during the appointments, moms and dads observe as the therapist works with their child.

“It’s not just the child we teach, but the parent as well,” Briggs said. “We teach the parent how to help. We’re only with them a short amount of time, but, the parents are with them all of the time.”

Although some of the children eventually recover and are able to attend regular preschools, many suffer from continually disabilities which prevent them from doing so.

CTC has a preschool classroom, where teachers such as Peggy Hobart, who lives in Maple Valley, provide a school environment. They also have what is known as peer models, either children without any conditions or have made progress, to give the other children examples to follow.

A unique feature of the facility is its orthotics room, where custom orthotics for children are created. Unlike typical orthotics, they are designed to help the wearer find their balance. The orthotics are fitted with a memory polymer, which gives the child’s feet maneuverability, yet provides them support.

One of their programs is early intervention for children 3 years old or younger. If a child is thought to have a problem which needs to be addressed, they are referred to a CTC family resource coordinator (FRC). CTC has a specific building called the Farmhouse, which has an interior section modeled after an average living room in a home. Briggs explained this helps the child relax and feel comfortable while the evaluation is performed.

An FRC also gives the child’s family information about additional services in the community such as doctor’s who treat their child’s specific problems.

Early intervention involves working with children at home, who might feel too uncomfortable, or are not healthy enough, to go to the facility. Like with regular therapy, they have the parents, as well as siblings, involved. While Briggs’ son, Bobby, was treated at home, she explained her 2-year-old son, Scott, was encouraged to participate in the therapy sessions.

Another natural concern for a parent when they learn their child has development issues are over the costs associated with treatment.

While insurance makes up the primary source of payment for parents at CTC, many are unable to afford the services. Briggs explained, however, no child is turned away from CTC. According to its brochure, 70 percent of families CTC serves meet the definition of low income.

To help offset the burden on parents, in 2011 CTC provided $2 million in financial assistance, where families were given a reduced rate, and uncompensated care, where services were not paid for.

“There’s not a lot of places that do that,” she said.