Horst Rechelbacher and Kiran Stordalen give $1.5M to Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota for new pain, palliative and integrative medicine clinic

MINNEAPOLIS and ST. PAUL, Minn., Oct. 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Horst Rechelbacher, the late cosmetics entrepreneur and founder of Aveda Corp. and Intelligent Nutrients, and his wife and business partner Kiran Stordalen, have given $1.5 million to expand Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota's internationally-recognized Pain, Palliative and Integrative Medicine program into a new one-of-a-kind center. It is the largest gift the couple has ever given to a non-profit organization, conceived long before Horst's death from pancreatic cancer in February.

Children's will name the clinic the Kiran Stordalen and Horst Rechelbacher Pediatric Pain, Palliative and Integrative Medicine Clinic in recognition of this lead gift. Aside from his pioneering work in organic beauty products, Horst's legacy is that of a pioneer in integrative, non-pharmaceutical therapies, such as aromatherapy.

Already one of the largest of its kind in the country, Children's program helps manage pediatric patients' pain by combining pharmacological therapies with integrative medicine such as aromatherapy and massage. The gift from Rechelbacher and Stordalen will allow Children's to further advance care by moving to a new 10,000-square-foot space which will serve as the home to a world-class, multi-disciplinary team of pediatric pain experts. The clinic will also expand to enable more children to have access to alternative treatments. The team currently treats about 800 children a year, and has a long waiting list. With the new clinic, Children's will now have the space and staffing to see more than 200 additional patients a year.

"The new facility will be emblematic of our life's work," said Kiran Stordalen. "Recognizing the psychological and physiological benefits of integrative medicine and being attentive to a patient's holistic needs provides powerful opportunities to deliver better care, and that's really what we're trying to do through our gift." 

Children's data and years of 24/7 bedside experience shows that pain management can and must be extended to every area of care to relieve or prevent suffering. Pain management helps patients heal faster, maintain better long-term health and avoid the debilitating effects of pain.

"Children's approach to care aligns with the vision Horst and I have used in our own lives, which is to integrate ideas which benefit people," added Stordalen. "We wanted to help Children's create an environment that helps children heal so they can grow into happy and healthy adults."

The clinic will be designed to connect pediatric patients with nature by using all-natural materials and increasing natural light. The center will also feature positive distractions such as interactive art and soothing music, along with a multi-sensory (snoezelen) room, which is a patient-centered soothing and stimulating environment.

"Regardless of how far we've come in medicine, the unfortunate truth is there are still far too many children who suffer from pain needlessly in a medical setting," said Stefan Friedrichsdorf, MD, medical director of the department of pain medicine, palliative care and integrative medicine at Children's. "Horst and Kiran have been pioneers and true visionaries in the healing benefits of integrative medicine, and we're thrilled to partner with the Stordalen/Rechelbacher family as we expand our expertise and services to help even more kids be pain free."

The Kiran Stordalen and Horst Rechelbacher Pediatric Pain, Palliative and Integrative Medicine Clinic is scheduled to open in January 2015 and will be located at Children's in Minneapolis.

A brief video of Horst and Kiran discussing the meaning of their gift is available at: http://youtu.be/IvkxToTTdbU.

About Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota
Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota is one of the largest pediatric health systems in the United States and the only health system in Minnesota to provide care exclusively to children, from before birth through young adulthood. An independent and not-for-profit system since 1924, Children's serves kids throughout the Upper Midwest at two free-standing hospitals, 12 primary and specialty-care clinics and six rehabilitation sites. Children's maintains its longstanding commitment to the community to improve children's health by providing high-quality, family-centered pediatric services and advancing those efforts through research and education. This work is made possible in large part by generous philanthropic and volunteer support from individuals and organizations throughout the state and region. An award-winning health system, Children's is regularly ranked by U.S. News & World Report as a top children's hospital and by The Leapfrog Group for quality and efficiency. Please visit childrensMN.org.

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SOURCE Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota