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Insights
This study details a multidisciplinary pediatric team approach in Tasmania, focusing on enhancing patient and family adaptation to hospitalization on a limited budget. Key strategies include open visiting, parent accommodation, and personalized care plans for children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Healthcare Management
- Child Health
Background:
- The Royal Hobart Hospital's pediatric unit faced challenges in adapting care for children and families within budget constraints.
- A comprehensive team approach is essential for holistic pediatric patient care.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the development and implementation of a multidisciplinary pediatric team approach.
- To outline strategies for improving patient and family adaptation to hospitalization.
- To detail methods for enhancing pediatric nursing standards.
Main Methods:
- Established a multidisciplinary team including pediatricians, surgeons, nurses, teachers, social workers, physiotherapists, and pharmacists.
- Implemented open visiting hours, allowing parents/relatives access anytime.
- Provided on-site accommodation for parents and encouraged their continuous presence.
- Utilized personal detail forms for individualized child care.
- Collected parent feedback through discharge questionnaires.
- Integrated playleaders, volunteers, and teachers to support child well-being and education.
- Engaged community groups for health education and support.
Main Results:
- The pediatric team approach facilitated better adaptation for children and parents.
- Personalized care plans and continuous parental involvement improved the hospital experience.
- Parental feedback mechanisms provided valuable insights into care quality.
- Volunteer and community engagement enhanced the supportive environment.
Conclusions:
- A multidisciplinary team, open family-centered care, and community engagement are vital for effective pediatric healthcare.
- Limited budgets can be managed through strategic resource allocation and volunteer integration.
- Continuous evaluation through parent feedback is crucial for quality improvement in pediatric units.
Abstract:
This paper deals with the development of a paediatric team approach to the care of children in the 70 bed paediatric unit in the Royal Hobart Hospital in Tasmania, Australia, and describes the measures used to help children and their parents adapt to life in hospital with a limited budget. The staff includes paediatricians and pediatric surgeon, resident staff, nurses, teachers, social worker, physiotherapist and pharmacist. There are no visiting hours but the wards are open to parents and relatives at any time. Parents are encouraged to stay in hospital and their accommodation is either in flats at the end of wards or in single or double bed wards using foldup beds. Each young child has a personal details form completed and placed on the end of the cot allowing a nurse to discover likes, dislikes, methods of feeding and sleeping, etc. Parents are asked to complete questionnaires at the time of the child's discharge, asking for their assessment of the standards of care their child received. Playleaders are rostered for evenings and weekends and they work with, and direct Red Cross volunteer ladies. Two full-time teachers cooperate with the child's school in maintaining the child's educational progress. Volunteer visitors entertain children whose relatives are unable to visit or stay in hospital. The methods used to raise the standards of paediatric nursing are also described. Community groups, particularly kindergarten and primary school children, are encouraged to visit the paediatric unit and each group is usually given a brief health education talk by a member of staff.
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