Your Hospital Visit

Keeping you safe while you are in the hospital is very important. This video shows how everyone -- from kids, to parents, to siblings, to your care team -- can help to make patient safety job #1.

What's That Mean: Consent

What's That Mean: ID Bracelet

What's That Mean: Side Rails

What's That Mean? - Comfort Measures (for Pain)

What's That Mean? - Ambulatory

Q is for Quarantine

What's That Mean: Quarantine

What's That Mean: Questionnaire

The thought of a hospital stay can be scary for children. They may not understand why they need to go. And not knowing what will happen when they get there makes them nervous. But as a parent, you can help. Here are some simple ways to ease your child's fears.

What's That Mean? - Teach-Back

This animated Speak Up™ video is especially for children going to the hospital. Marco, as Captain Speak Up, helps em"power" Cara, so she feels confident asking her doctor questions. "Speak Up: Kid Power!" emphasizes that children have the right to ask questions and voice their concerns if they don't understand something.

During your child's hospital stay, falling may be more likely. Nurses and other healthcare providers will do all they can to prevent a fall. You can do your part, too.

This sheet explains surgery in a way that kids can understand.

This sheet explains what happens before surgery in a way that kids can understand.

This sheet helps explain what your child will see in the operating room.

This sheet will help your child get to know the different members of the healthcare team.

The pleural space is the area between the lung and the chest wall. If air, blood, or fluid gets into this space, it can be a problem. This air, fluid, or blood can cause one or both lungs to collapse, which makes breathing difficult. A chest tube can drain the pleural space. This tube is soft and flexible. Your child may need a chest tube to prevent his or her lung from collapsing. Or he or she may need it to allow the lung to expand after collapsing.

Your child's healthcare provider has told you that your child needs a tracheostomy. This creates a new pathway for air. Surgery is needed to do this. During the surgery, the surgeon makes a small opening in your child's neck. A tube (called a trach tube) is placed in this opening. Air then flows into and out of the trach tube, allowing your child to breathe. This sheet will help you learn more about tracheostomy.

A tracheostomy rneeds regular care to keep the area clean and to prevent infection and skin breakdown.

In a trach tube, mucus can build up and thicken. Regular suctioning of mucus keeps the tube clear. You will be instructed on how to suction mucus. Read on to learn the basic steps.

Your child needs surgery to treat a heart problem. This sheet will help you and your child get ready for the surgery.

Your child just had surgery to treat a heart problem. The surgeon made an incision down the chest or breastbone or between the ribs. Here are general guidelines to care for your child at home.

Your child may need a cardiac catheterization if a heart problem is suspected or to follow a known heart problem. It may also be needed if your child is being prepared for heart surgery and information on the heart is required before treatment.

Your child may need a heart problem treated using interventional cardiac catheterization. Learn the risks and what to expect.

An echocardiogram is an imaging test that uses sound waves (ultrasound) to create pictures of the heart. Learn why your child might need one.

The rate or pattern of the heartbeat is known as the heart rhythm. Abnormal heart rhythms are called arrhythmias. These can cause your child to have symptoms such as lightheadedness, dizziness, low blood pressure, fainting, or fatigue. Rarely, arrhythmias can cause more serious problems. To help the doctor learn more about your child's heart rhythm, tests can be done.

The hospital can seem like a large and scary place to your child. This sheet can help you learn what goes on during a hospital stay, so you can know what to expect and ease some of your child's fears.

I your child is in the ICU, it means that they need special care and attention that can be given only by a team of specially trained healthcare providers. This sheet tells you more about what to expect when your child is in the ICU.

You're likely looking forward to when your child can return home from the hospital. Planning for your child's discharge involves all the members of your child's healthcare team. They'll work closely with you to prepare for your child's needs at home. Here are some of the things to know about hospital discharge.

What's That Mean: Surgery

This video gives patients an overview of what to expect before and after their surgery.

When Goldilocks tries to sneak a bowl of porridge on the night before her surgery, Mama Bear comes to the rescue. She explains to Goldilocks why it's important not to eat or drink too soon before surgery, and tells her what happened to Baby Bear when he did not follow his doctor's NPO instructions. Co-Produced with Boston Children's Hospital, based on their NPO guidelines.

What's That Mean: NPO

Before surgery, kids may be a bit worried about getting "knocked out." Lorrin and Daniel help to reduce their fears by explaining what anesthesia is and what kids can expect.

What's That Mean: Anesthesia

What's That Mean: Sedation

What's That Mean: Procedure Team

A procedure is something done to figure out what is happening inside your body or to help your body get better. Sedation is a special medicine your care team uses to put you into a special sleep where you won't see, hear, or feel anything. Procedural Sedation is when your care team uses "sleepy medicine" before -- and during -- your procedure.

What's That Mean: Procedural Sedation

What's That Mean: Sedation Team

What's That Mean: Operating Room

What's That Mean: Suture

What's That Mean: Recovery Room

What's That Mean: Recovery Room

Your baby is about to have surgery. It's normal for you to stress about it. But don't let it overwhelm you. Let's talk about how to prepare yourself and your baby.

Hypospadias means your child's urethra doesn't reach the tip of the penis. So the opening of the penis is in the wrong place. Surgery can fix this. It can also be done to correct how the penis looks. Learn about the different surgery methods, and what to expect.

Your child is having surgery on his or her bladder. You may feel scared for your child and have many questions. This is normal. Learn what to expect with the surgery and discuss any questions or concerns you may have with your child's healthcare provider.

Your healthcare provider has suggested laparoscopic urologic surgery for your child. This is to help diagnose or treat a problem in the urinary tract. Learn more about this type of surgery, and what to expect before, during, and after this procedure.

Your child will likely be drowsy for a while. He or she may have a faint memory of the procedure, or may not remember it at all.

This sheet will help your child know what to expect when he or she wakes up from surgery.

When your doctor says it's OK, you can go home. Your surgery is over. You did it!

Your child had a procedure called inguinal hernia repair. An inguinal hernia looks like a bubble or bulge in your child's groin area. This is from the intestine pushing against the weak spot. During your child's surgery, the healthcare provider made a small incision to repair and reinforce the weak spot. Below are instructions for caring for your child following the surgery.

Your child had a procedure called a splenectomy. This is surgery to remove the spleen. Here's what you need to know about caring for your child at home.

Your child had a nephrectomy. His or her kidney was taken out because it wasn't working properly. It was putting your child at risk of future problems, such as dangerous infections or high blood pressure. Now your child can live a normal, healthy life with one kidney. Here's what you'll need to know about caring for your child after surgery.

Here's what you need to know about caring for your child at home following an open splenectomy.

Pyloric stenosis is a condition that makes it hard for food to move from the stomach into the small intestine. The treatment is surgery called pyloromyotomy. Here's what you need to know about home care following the surgery.

A hernia is a weakness or tear in the wall of the belly. An umbilical hernia looks like a bubble or bulge near your child's bellybutton. Although many umbilical hernias close on their own, some require surgery. During your child's surgery, the healthcare provider made a small incision and repaired the muscle. Here are some instructions to help you care for child once at home.

Your child is having surgery. Learn all you can about the surgery to help your child prepare. This sheet lists some of the common words and phrases that describe surgery. And it gives you suggestions for how to explain these words to your child.

Your child is having surgery. Before the surgery, you may need to take your child to the hospital for a pre-op clinical visit. Here is information about what to expect and what to bring to the hospital.

In this situation, you might not have time to learn about your child's surgery or to prepare your child. It's important to keep your emotions under control. Hospital staff can help answer your questions. Read this sheet to know what to expect when your child needs emergency surgery.

Knowing what to expect can help you and your child feel better about surgery. This sheet gives an overview of what happens on the day of surgery. It also gives suggestions on how to help your child recover afterward.

Help your child get ready for surgery by learning more about the operating room staff and the kind of equipment they might see. Knowing what to expect can help you and your child feel more comfortable about surgery.

During surgery, your child will receive anesthesia. This is medicine that causes your child to relax or fall asleep, and not feel pain during surgery. See below for more information about different types of anesthesia.

Children use play to express emotion, learn, and interact. When getting ready for surgery, play can help children understand and cope with their hospital experience.

Your infant is having surgery. You may have concerns about how you and your infant will cope with this experience. Knowing what to expect can help you feel better about surgery. Read this sheet to find out ways you can help prepare your infant for surgery.

Your child is having surgery. You may have concerns about how your child will cope with this experience. Knowing what to expect can help you and your child feel better about surgery. Read this sheet to find out how you can help prepare your child for surgery.

Preschoolers can understand simple details about surgery. Read on to learn how to talk with them about what to expect, and other ways to help prepare them for the procedure.

School-aged children can understand simple explanations about surgery. Talk to your child about surgery a week in advance. Be aware that your child may have questions that he or she is afraid to ask.

You may have concerns about how your teenager will cope with surgery. Knowing what to expect can help you and your teen feel better about surgery.

When a child is having surgery, it's important to remember that siblings are also affected. They may not understand why their brother or sister needs surgery. Knowing what to expect can help them be more comfortable with the idea of surgery.

Your child is having surgery. This may be a frightening experience for both you and your child. You can help your child by learning more about what happens during surgery. Here are questions you may have for different members of the healthcare team.