Pediatric Patient Care Services
Anesthesia
The anesthesia staff at Newton-Wellesley has extensive experience working with children. Last year, the hospital’s anesthesiologists and nurse anesthetists handled nearly 1,000 pediatric cases; approximately half of them were babies or toddlers. All of our anesthesiologists have training in pediatric anesthesia and eight have completed fellowships in the subspecialty. The Department’s staff also cares for patients outside of the operating room through a Pediatric Sedation Service, which provides sedation or general anesthesia for children undergoing diagnostic or therapeutic procedures, such as MRI and CT scans.
Child Life Specialists
Child Life Specialists at Newton-Wellesley Hospital provide emotional support for children and families. They cover both the inpatient service and Pediatric Emergency Department. One is available days and the other is in the Emergence Department evenings and weekends.
Child Life is active in preparation and procedural support for children undergoing testing and invasive radiological procedures. We also provide support for the Pediatric Ambulatory practices.
We are also involved in the new pre-operative preparation program which prepares children for day surgery. The Family Resource Room on 6 North is available to all and features many printed and electronic educational materials as well as a computer workstation for use by family members.
The Child Life Specialists are also integral parts of the Kids on the Move, a weight management program for children, which offers help with self-esteem and body image issues.
Contact Child Life by calling 617-243-5691.
Nutrition
Outpatient Nutrition consultation provided by appointment Monday thru Friday (32 hrs/wk) by a Registered Dietitian experienced in pediatrics and family education. Failure to thrive, obesity, food allergies, gastrointestinal conditions, and age-related feeding concerns are all common reasons for referral. For more information, call 617-243-5212 -or- by pager 617-243-5858, beeper 56586. To schedule an appointment, call NWH Central Scheduling at 617-243-6800.
Hope Program @ Newton-Wellesley Hospital
Experiencing the death of a loved one can be a painful time for families. Parents and caregivers are often faced with explaining this loss to their children of all ages, which can be extremely difficult. The Hope program was established several years ago to ease the pain children and families encounter by guiding them through the grieving process with helpful suggestions and creative expression.
The program includes informational materials for parents as well as an activity book, crayons and stress ball for children. The information for parents includes some general suggestions for talking to children about death and a list of age-dependent behaviors parents may see in their children. The activity book is designed to assist children in exploring their own emotions through creative expression. It can also provide them with a deeper understanding of what may occur when someone dies. For further information please contact Lori Stacks at 617-243-6510.
Kids on the Move
A four-week program for children currently under a physician’s care for obesity. Supported by the Newton-Wellesley Hospital Rehabilitation Services Department, it is a multidisciplinary approach to assist children and their families in learning new behaviors to support and maintain weight loss. Participating are staff from Physical Therapy, Nutrition, Child Life and Nursing. Exercise, nutrition education and behavior modification are brought together into 90-minute sessions that are action-oriented and fun – and geared to parents and children alike. For further information please call 617-243-6172.
Social Service
Speech Language Pathology
Offers initial speech and language evaluations, consultations and treatment to children of all ages. We see children with a wide variety of communication disorders including developmental speech and language delays, phonological disorders, oral and written language difficulties, language-based learning disabilities, stuttering, voice problems such as vocal nodules or chronic hoarseness speech and language difficulties following cochlear implantation. Licensed speech-language pathologists holding certification from the American Speech-Language Hearing Association provide all services.
|
Medical/Surgical Departments 
