FAQ’s

Children who require the services available at Shriners Hospitals for Children® often are referred by a physician. In many cases this will be your primary care physician. You may also contact the hospital yourself via our toll-free patient referral line at 866.459.0013.You may download an application treatment in English or Spanish. If you choose to complete this form you do not have to fill in the space designated for a sponsoring Shriner. All requests for care are reviewed by the appropriate hospital’s chief of staff to ensure that the child has a condition that we specialize in.

Children up to age 18 are eligible for admission to Shriners Hospitals for Children® if, in the opinion of our physicians, there is a reasonable possibility they can benefit from the specialized services available. Acceptance is based solely on a child’s medical needs.

If your child’s condition is one that we specialize in you will receive a packet of information in the mail that will include the following items:

• A letter noting the initial appointment date and time (it will include the name and telephone number of a contact person at the hospital for you to call if you have questions about your first visit)
• Several pre-registration forms
• A checklist of things to bring on your first visit
• A map and directions
• A listing of our affiliated Shriners that provide transportation to the hospital

If your child has a condition that is not within our scope of expertise, you will receive a telephone call from our patient services coordinator explaining that we do not specialize in the service your child needs. If we are unable to reach you by telephone, you will receive a letter.

There are several documents you’ll need to bring the first time you come to Shriners Hospitals for Children®. Use this checklist when preparing for your first appointment:

• Applicable legal documents – if applicable, bring any legal documents pertaining to custody, divorce, separation, adoption or name change of a parent or child.
• Insurance or state aid information – when possible and covered by insurance or state aid, Shriners Hospitals for Children® will bill your insurance provider/state aid provider for services provided for your child. In addition, if your child needs diagnostic testing, consult services and/or equipment not provided by Shriners Hospitals for Children®, we will use outside resources or facilities. Those resources/hospitals will request that your insurance/state aid provider be contacted to assist in the payment of these expenses and the hospital will contact them for payment authorization. It is important to note that if your child is medically qualified to receive treatment from Shriners Hospitals for Children® that care will be provided regardless of whether you have insurance/state aid or your ability to pay.
• Medical records – past medical records pertinent to your child’s diagnosis, such as x-rays, test results, and consultation reports with neurologists, cardiologists or orthopaedists, may assist us in evaluation of your child. If possible please send those reports to the Applications Department prior to your scheduled visit so the appropriate physician can review them.
• Immunization records – please bring an up-to-date record of your child’s immunizations. Your child may also require additional immunizations prior to arrival, depending on his or her age and state requirements.
• A list of any allergies this includes food, medication and materials such as latex.
• Shorts and a t-shirt/tank top/sports bra – your child may need to be minimally dressed for some tests, such as x-rays.

The first visit can last several hours. This gives our medical team enough time to perform a thorough evaluation of your child. Please be prepared to spend a few hours in the hospital. Toys, magazines, DVD’s, and books are provided in the waiting rooms and exam rooms. You are welcome to bring your own books, toys or crafts. You are also welcome to eat breakfast, lunch or dinner in our cafeteria while you are waiting.

Based on the initial evaluation, your medical team will develop a treatment plan specifically for your child. This plan will be explained to you in detail. Before you go home you will be given a return appointment to come to one of our specialty clinics based on your child’s treatment plan.

Talk to your child about the visit and reassure him or her that you will be there the entire time. Explain that your child will be weighed and measured, and that a doctor will do an examination. Let him or her know that we sometimes take pictures, or x-rays, of their body, and that it will not hurt.

If your child is ill or has been exposed to a contagious disease, such as chicken pox or head lice, please notify your hospital immediately to reschedule your child’s appointment.

Getting your child ready for surgery can be a stressful time and it can be helpful to make a list of questions prior to your meeting with the medical team. Please don’t hesitate to ask any and all questions you have because it is important to us that you feel comfortable and confident about your child’s surgery. Here are some of the questions you may want to ask before surgery:

• Please describe the operation to me – where and what size will the incision be? How do you identify the site where the incision will be?
• Why does my child need this operation?
• Will he or she need more surgeries after this one?
• Could you tell me how long my child will be in the operating room?
• Will I be notified about how my child is doing during the surgery?
• What are the benefits of having this operation?
• What are the risks of having this operation?
• What if my child doesn’t have this operation? Are there alternatives to surgery?
• Should I get a second opinion? If I do, does Shriners Hospitals for Children® pay for it?
• As a parent, where should I go during the operation?
• Because I sign a blood consent does that mean you are going to give my child blood?
• What kind of anesthesia is used and how is it given?
• Should I give my child his or her prescribed medication prior to surgery, like seizure medication?
• Can my child continue to take herbal treatments?
• How long will my child be in the recovery room?
• How soon can I see my child after surgery?
• What should I expect after surgery?
• Will there be swelling?
• Will he/she have any monitors, IVs or oxygen?
• he/she be in a cast?
• How much pain will my child have?
• How do you manage pain so my child is as comfortable as possible?
• How can you tell how much pain my child is in?
• Can parents spend the night?
• When will we be able to go home?
• If we have any complications/problems after we go home whom should I call?
• Do I need to arrange for help to take care of my child at home or can I do it myself?
• Will I need to arrange for special equipment for my child when we go home?
• When can my child start regular activities again and go to school?
• Should we bring his/her walker, wheelchair, braces, etc?

The vast majority of surgeries at Shriners Hospitals for Children® are elective, meaning that there is no immediate risk to the child that requires surgery to take place right away. Your child’s optimal wellbeing is also an important part of planning their surgery, so we may require extra time for rehabilitation, non-surgical treatments for their condition or even nutritional therapy before surgery is performed.On average there is a three- to six-month wait before a surgery or admission. Our surgery scheduler will call you with an appointment as soon as a date has been set.Here are some important guidelines for preparing for your child’s surgery:

• Four weeks prior to surgery – you are responsible for making all travel and housing arrangements at least 30 days before your admission.

If your child will need a wheelchair after surgery please make arrangements to have it ready before you come to the hospital. You may need to call your care coordinator for a prescription and contact your insurance or state aid provider for pre-authorization.

• Two weeks prior to surgery – stop all herbal medicines and aspirin two weeks before surgery. If your child is taking aspirin for something other than pain please notify your care coordinator. Do not give your child ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, etc.) or naproxen (Aleve) for 24 hours before the surgery. If these medicines are taken it could mean the surgery date will need to be changed or canceled.
• One week prior to surgery – one week before surgery the hospital will call you to see if your child is healthy. For your child’s safety let us know if your child has been sick or has been exposed to an infectious disease like mumps, measles or chicken pox in the last six weeks.

Let your care coordinator know if your child needs special foods or medical equipment.

• The day before surgery – Please follow these eating and drinking restrictions carefully, as well as any other pre-operative eating and drinking instructions our nurses give you the day before surgery:

• Do not give any solid food or milk products after midnight the night before the surgery.
• Breast fed children may have breast milk until four hours before the procedure.
• Formula fed children may have formula until six hours before the procedure.
• Children under the age of six should be offered clear liquids three hours before the procedure and then should have nothing. Clear liquids include water, apple juice or grape juice.
• It is very important that absolutely nothing be given by mouth for at least three hours before the procedure.
• The day of surgery – before surgery the child’s parent or legal guardian will need to sign consent forms. If the patient is 18 or older and capable he or she will sign his or her own consent forms. There will be separate consent forms for hospital treatment, the procedure, anesthesia and blood transfusions.

• Medications used at home – please bring all medications currently used at home. Please bring medications in their original containers. Also bring any other herbs, vitamins or nutritional supplements you are using. Any medications prescribed by a physician at Shriners Hospitals for Children® while a child is in the hospital will be provided.
• Appliances or other aids – bring crutches, walkers, braces, prosthetics, special shoes or any other medical appliances. Even if your child has outgrown them please bring the most recently used devices.
• Applicable legal documents – if applicable, bring any legal documents pertaining to custody, divorce, separation, adoption or name change of a parent or child.
• Immunization records – please bring an up-to-date record of your child’s immunizations. Your child may also require additional immunizations prior to arrival, depending on his or her age and state requirements.
• Insurance or state aid information – when possible and covered by insurance or state aid, Shriners Hospitals for Children will bill your insurance/state aid provider for services provided for your child. In addition, if your child needs diagnostic testing, consult services and/or equipment not provided by Shriners Hospitals for Children, we will use outside resources or facilities. Those resources/hospitals will request that your insurance/state aid provider be contacted to assist in the payment of these expenses and the hospital will contact them for payment authorization. It is important to note that if your child is medically qualified to receive treatment from Shriners Hospitals for Children that care will be provided regardless of whether you have insurance/state aid, or your ability to pay.
• Comfort items from home – to help your child feel more comfortable and secure you may want to bring a favorite toy, blanket or other item from home. Please label this item with your child’s name and we will send it with your child into the operating room. If your child uses a special nurser cup or formula please bring that as well.
• Personal care items – patients are supplied with a toothbrush, toothpaste, comb, brush and deodorant, but you are welcome to bring your own items, as well as any other personal care/grooming items you or your child prefer.
• Items for parents – Parents are welcome to stay in the room with their child during their stay and should bring personal toiletries, money for meals, a cell phone or calling card, and any reading materials or crafts you may enjoy. There is no gift shop in the hospital for supplies, but there are grocery stores and drug stores near the hospital.
• Primary care physician information – bring the name, address and phone number of your child’s primary care physician and any other care provider who needs a treatment report.
• A 24-hour supply of special food or medical equipment – the hospital will supply such needs after that period.
• A list of any allergies – this includes food, medication and materials such as latex.
• Money for medicine for when your child goes home – the hospital cannot fill any prescriptions and you may need to stop at a drugstore to fill a prescription prior to going home.

• Before the operation – Before surgery a doctor will explain the procedure and tell you about how long it will take. An operating room nurse and a member of the anesthesiology staff will also visit your child before surgery to explain the process. Please feel free to ask any questions you have during this time.
• In the pre-operative room – You will be able to stay with your child right up until the moment he or she is taken to the operating room. When you come to the pre-operative room you will be met by an operating room nurse who will be with your child during the entire surgical process. This nurse will also call you periodically during the surgery to let you know how things are going.
• In the operating room – Once your child is in the operating room a flavor-scented mask will be used to give the first phase of anesthesia. Your child may choose the flavor. (Older patients may choose to go to sleep intravenously rather than using a mask.) If your child requires an IV line, it will be started after he or she has fallen asleep, following the start of anesthesia. In most cases, any uncomfortable procedure will be done while your child is under anesthesia.
• Recovery – Immediately after surgery your child will be moved to the Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU), or recovery room, for close observation as they awaken from anesthesia. When the surgery is finished, the surgeon will meet with you to discuss your child’s surgery. Children awake from anesthesia at different rates, so recovery times vary.
• After surgery – Once your child is medically stable he or she will be transferred to a nursing unit for the remainder of the hospital stay.

Your child will need to be awake, alert and drinking some fluids before going home. At that time, or after your child’s remaining hospital stay is complete, he or she will be ready for discharge.

Visits from family and friends can make a hospital stay seem shorter and brighten a child’s day. However, it’s also important that our patients get the rest they need to recover and be ready to go home.Visitors must pick up a pass at the front lobby desk.

Parents or guardians will be responsible for accompanying visitors (family and non-family) under the age of 16 years. Children are not allowed on the third floor.

Both parents or guardians may stay with their child 24 hours a day.

Patients love to receive gifts while in the hospital. We suggest inexpensive and safe gifts that are appropriate for the child’s age. Before bringing a gift of food please consult with the child’s nurses.Please note that we do not allow rubber balloons. Rubber balloons cause a safety and allergy hazard to many of our patients. Only Mylar (foil) balloons are permitted in the hospital.

• Only two visitors at a time are permitted for each patient. When more than two visitors are here we ask that they take turns, using the visitor’s lounge, outdoor patio or main lobby between visits.
• All visitors must wear a visitor’s pass at all times. Passes are available at the front lobby desk and are valid for one visit.
• Our patients are more vulnerable to infections, so visitors with a cold, flu, vomiting, diarrhea, pink eye, fever, rashes, fifth disease, head lice, chicken pox or other infection should wait until their condition has improved before visiting.
• Parents/guardians are not to leave the inpatient area of the hospital without first notifying a nurse.
• Visitors who are disorderly or who do not observe hospital regulations will be escorted from the hospital by a security guard and refused subsequent visiting privileges.
• Alcoholic beverages, weapons or illegal drugs are not permitted in any area of the hospital. Any visitor who brings these items to the hospital will be escorted out by a security guard and may be refused subsequent visiting privileges.

• Patients who will be having surgery should not wear acrylic nails to the hospital.
• No weapons are tolerated on the premises of the hospital.
• No items containing latex, including latex balloons, rubber balls, and certain toys and games. Mylar (foil) balloons are allowed.
• No electrical appliances, such as hair dryers, hair curlers or electric razors.
• Shriners Hospitals for Children® is not responsible for money or other valuables, such as electronics and jewelry brought in by patients and families.