Today we’d like to introduce you to Christy Juszczak.
Hi Christy, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I am originally from Winter Haven, FL. I became a Registered Nurse in 2009 and landed a job at a local hospital where I worked as a Maternal/Newborn Nurse. Caring for people has always been a passion of mine. I knew from a very young age I would either be a teacher, a nurse, a mom, or a combination of all three!
I got married in 2010, had my first child, and relocated to Buda, TX in 2011. I then started working on the Labor and Delivery unit at a hospital in Kyle, TX. After about 12 years of bedside nursing, I was longing for a change. By 2017, I had three small children and I was no longer willing to sacrifice the long hours, night shifts, holidays, and weekends away from my family. In October of 2020, at the age of 34, I lost my mom suddenly to pancreatic cancer. That took a huge toll on my emotional health and well-being, that is when I left the hospital setting completely. I currently work at my daughter’s Mother’s Day Out program as a co-teacher while trying to grow a small business in my downtime.
I have always dreamt of being a small business owner but wasn’t sure where to start or what to do. Then one day my mother-in-law, Caroline Juszczak, called to ask me if I wanted to go into business with her doing this biliblanket gig. The more I thought about it, the more excited I felt about the opportunity. I remember thinking how this would be the most perfect fit for me with my 12+ years of experience working with new parents and their babies. After all I have set up biliblankets and phototherapy systems for jaundice newborns a hundred times, how hard could it possibly be?! So long story short, Austin BiliBlankets, LLC was born in 2021! We provide biliblanket rentals to families whose jaundice newborn requires home phototherapy treatment. Our goal is to keep babies out of the hospital and to keep families at home together, where they belong!
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Becoming a small business owner comes with many obstacles and challenges. With the excitement of taking a leap of faith, I overlooked how difficult it was going to be to get up and running. In order to start renting out our equipment, we needed to get a state Durable Medical Equipment (DME) license. The state was backlogged so it took many, many months to get our license. During that downtime, we tried to reach as many midwives, birthing centers, pediatricians, OB/GYNS, and pregnant women as possible. I am in charge of our social media pages and trying to create engaging and consistent posts was a lot more difficult than I anticipated! I consider myself to be more of an introvert so making “cold calls”, showing up at offices and clinics (even bearing treats) has been quite the learning curve for me. I got the opportunity to do a demonstration of our phototherapy system in a very large and well-known birthing center and I was a nervous wreck! This opportunity has pushed me outside of my comfort zone but in a really great way. I have learned so much about myself and my hidden strengths during this process. I also thought that because I was “in” with the medical professionals, this business would come easy and would just take off. We have had a very slow start but we’re not quitters! We’ve had good months and bad months but keep on trudging forward. Hard work WILL pay off in the long run.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Austin BiliBlankets, LLC is an Austin, TX based, women-owned, small business.
Having a baby is stressful enough and full of unknowns. When it’s discharge day and you find out your baby has just been diagnosed with Jaundice and now you have to stay in the hospital for another 2-3 days, it can be very depressing. Or perhaps you’ve already been discharged home with your infant and upon the first well check your baby’s lab test shows a diagnosis of jaundice and has to be readmitted to the hospital for phototherapy treatment. That’s where we come in. Our company provides a complete phototherapy system that can be rented and used in the comfort of your own home. Depending on the severity of the bilirubin level (the blood test used to diagnose Jaundice) phototherapy can safely and effectively be treated at home. Our light system is unique because we use the newest technology system currently available called Skylife by Neolight. This system is designed for intermittent phototherapy which means your baby does not have to be on the light around the clock. Baby just needs to be on the light for 12 out of 24 hours a day. This leaves you with ample time for bonding, skin-to-skin contact, breastfeeding, diapering, and meeting new family members.
We are known for our outstanding customer service and promptness of equipment delivery once we receive an order from providers.
The fact that we are a Durable Medical Equipment provider and only provide one service/one piece of equipment sets us apart from other larger DME companies that provide dozens of other services and endless pieces of medical equipment. BiliBlanket rentals for Jaundice newborns is our specialty. This gives us the flexibility to have a quick turnaround time from order to delivery. We don’t accept health insurance which also speeds up delivery and initiation of treatment. Our rate is $150 a day for a minimum of a two-day rental, so families are looking at $300 upfront. This is very cost-effective, considering the cost of a NICU admission for phototherapy treatment alone. Most of our clients are on the light for 2-3 days.
I am most proud of our brand because we are a small company and are able get to know our clients on a more personal level. We check on them daily to ensure their needs are being met, follow up with how baby is doing, and to just be a listening ear.
I want our readers to know that we are available 24/7, nights, weekends, and holidays to answer any questions they may have. I am a trained RN in Maternal/Newborn Nursing as well as Labor/Delivery so not only do we provide an amazing service in this community but I am also a great resource and wealth of knowledge.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
I think the most important lesson I’ve learned along this journey is patience. Patience is not something I come by naturally. I am very much a woman of instant gratification. Starting a business has forced me to be patient when I didn’t want to be. I just knew in my heart that if I wanted this to be successful, put in all the hours to outreach, getting our name out there, it would just blow up immediately. It hasn’t. It has very much been a waiting game. It has also been very easy to get discouraged and question what I’m doing. Then, all of a sudden, the business line will ring and it’s a new client. It is then that I realize we’re doing a great thing. It’s like I get a second wind and have the energy to keep on keeping on. I am very passionate about Austin BiliBlankets and will not settle for anything less than excellence and success.
Pricing:
- $150 daily rental fee with a minimum of a two-day rental. We collect $300 upfront and if the light is needed for subsequent days, it’s $150 each additional day.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@austinbiliblankets.com
- Website: www.austinbiliblankets.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/austin_biliblankets/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AustinBiliBlankets
