Having Surgery at Children's
The Pre-Operative Interview
You will receive a call from the Surgical Admission nurse 2 to 3 days prior to surgery to discuss your child’s health, your concerns, and to answer any questions you might have. It is important that we know your child’s health history to help identify potential risks before your child’s anesthesia and surgery. We need to know:
- All prescription and non-prescription medicines your child is taking. If your child takes medication every day, you will be told which medicine should be given before surgery.
- If your child has a history of heart or lung problems, your child’s cardiologist or pulmonologist may be asked to give medical recommendations and clearance for surgery and anesthesia to proceed.
There are other issues which may or may not apply to your child. It’s a good idea to think about these ahead of time so you are prepared for the pre-operative interview. Does your child have:
- Allergies to medicine, food or latex
- Reactions to anesthesia or to a blood transfusion
- A history of motion sickness or nausea after anesthesia or medication
- Updated immunizations
- Previous illnesses or operations
- Previous hospital stays (admissions), tests, or treatments
- Anything that might put my child at risk during the hospital visit
The Evening Before Surgery
Surgical Admission nurse will call you the night before surgery (or Friday night for Monday surgery) between the hours of 3 pm and 9:30 pm to finalize the time of your child’s surgery and the time you need to arrive at our Surgical Admissions area. If you do not receive this phone call by 6 pm, or are away from your phone, please call (202) 476-5122.
Time for Surgery
You may be wondering, “Why do I have to wait until the night before surgery to find out the exact time for my child’s surgery?” You can be given a tentative time for your child’s surgery, but the time often changes because of emergency surgical cases. While we know it is frustrating, the exact time for surgery cannot be given until the evening before. Generally, we make every effort to schedule infants and toddlers in the morning.
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