Childrens (Paediatrics)

The paediatric department deals with acute and emergency conditions in children and newborn babies and is made up of an outpatients department, General Paediatric Inpatient Ward and a Children’s Assessment Unit.

The department treats every child and baby as an individual, with unique physical, psychological, spiritual and educational needs. It also recognises the importance of family involvement and support, and aims to provide support for families to return home with confidence and knowledge which enables them to continue care in the child’s natural environment.

Riverbank Ward (children’s inpatient ward)

Riverbank Ward has two bays and a day case surgery area, plus a number of side rooms which are allocated to children and babies who require isolation. The ward cares for children and teenagers from 0 – 16 years or the end of their GCSE exams – whichever comes last. Young people over 16 years of age will be cared for on the adult wards, but will be supported by the Paediatric team in some circumstances. Parents may be allowed to stay with their children on these wards in discussion with the ward managers.

Day case surgery takes place in Rose bay, and patients will be prepared for their visit by our play team and outpatients nurses shortly before their visit to ensure children and their families are fully prepared for their experience.

The ward can provide level 1 high dependency beds for sicker children and are supported by the PaNDR transport service, who provide real time advice to our teams, and may occasionally provide a safe transfer of children to a larger hospital with high dependency, surgery specific or intensive care beds when needed.  There is also a pleasant play room and open air garden for the children, which are both supervised by the play team.

The ward provides

• Free parking for admitted patients
• Hot and cold meals for all patients and breastfeeding mothers
• Breast pumps and breastfeeding support for breastfeeding mothers
• Play therapy and distraction support for anxious children
• A parents room with facilities to make food and drink
• Outdoor play area, indoor play room and sensory space
• Teenage/Young persons area
• Free WiFi
• SEND equipment, special access bathrooms and accessibility support
• School teacher to support children missing school due to longer admissions
• Translation service
• Working partnerships with community partners (Community nurses, physiotherapists, Speech and Language, Greys education)

Visiting:

• The inpatient ward allows two parents/carers at any one time. They must be aged over 18 years.
• The two parents/carers can change at any time to meet the needs of the family. For safety reasons and to support the children sleeping and resting, we ask that only one parent/carer stays overnight from 8pm.
• Exceptions will be made for critically unwell children and long term stays.
• We ask that siblings do not visit the ward for infection control and safety reasons.
• CAU asks that only one parent/carer stays until a decision to admit has been made due to space constraints and infection control.

Children’s Assessment Unit

CAU is a unit to assess acutely unwell children. CAU is open 24 hours a day to provide care for a children with a range of health issues. Children can be referred from the emergency department, the GP’s Community nursing teams, health visitors, urgent treatment centres or a self-referral can be made if pre-arranged open access has been granted. Children may also attend CAU for pre-booked appointments, following a period of admission.

The services is staffed by Paediatric nurses, doctors and health care assistants. Patients may be required to stay in the assessment unit for up to 24 hours for a period of observation, after which time they will be admitted to the general ward or be discharged home.

Please note: a series of short tests and patient observations will be likely to happen on arrival, it may take some time for these test results to come back.

Please note: Patients may not be seen in the order which they arrive, but we will be doing everything we can to ensure patient are seen as quickly as possible.

Children’s Assessment Unit – GP Referral Guidance

The Children’s Assessment Unit (CAU) at Bedford Hospital is open 24 hours a day, seeing acutely unwell children and babies.

Children can be referred here from the Children’s Emergency Department or from their GP.

If you are a GP wishing to make an acute referral, please call Bedford Hospital switchboard (01234 355122) and ask for the: Paediatric Registrar Referral Phone on ext. 6809 or bleep 605.

For more further guidance, please visit the dedicated website page.

Take a virtual tour

The Paediatric departments at Bedfordshire Hospitals have collaborated with Little Journey, to create videos of our children’s wards and theatres so our younger patients can see what to expect when they come to the ward for surgery.

This is to prepare your child for their hospital experience from the comfort of your own home, whilst helping them familiarise themselves with what will happen and who they will meet on their hospital journey!

Download the app and select Luton and Dunstable University Hospital or Bedford Hospital to view the virtual tours and animations and play some fun games. There are helpful reminders, hospital guides and informational articles for the grown ups too.

Learn more at www.littlejourney.health

Children’s Outpatient Department

The children’s outpatient department is based in Cygnet Wing, opposite adjacent to the entrance. The department runs routine outpatient clinics including specialty clinics in cardiology, respiratory medicine, oncology, diabetes, rheumatology, ophthalmology, orthopaedics and dermatology.

The Ambulatory Care Service is a nurse led clinic which provides a service for day investigations which are carried out in our Outpatient department. Occasionally patients may need a case bed depending on the procedure

Specialist Nurses

We have a number of specialist nurses who provide care for long term conditions.

Children’s Blood Tests

Children under 16 need to attend the children and teenager’s outpatient unit in Cygnet Wing at Bedford Hospital (South Wing).  All children’s blood tests are by appointment only.

From Monday 18 October 2021, additional appointment systems have been introduced. There will be a number of ways to book an appointment including:

• Using the online booking service (available 24/7). Patients will need to register online using the child’s details: www.bedfordpaediatrics.sangix.co.uk
• The automated telephone booking service using the child’s details (available 24/7). The telephone number is: 01234 868006

When booking the appointment, please register with your child’s details

You can speak to our Paediatric team Monday to Friday during limited opening hours (9am – 12pm and 2pm – 4pm) on 01234 730421.

If your child has additional needs, or those with special requests such as fasting, genetics and hormone tests. Please endeavour to call this number only for the criteria listed as the line can get very busy. If possible, appointments should be booked online or via the automated booking system.

Please read the following information carefully about your child’s blood test:

• A blood test form is required on each visit.
• Please arrive on time.
• Check the personal ID on the form is correct before arriving for the test.
• Please ensure your child is well hydrated.
• If you would like your child to have skin numbing cream prior to the blood test, please follow these guidelines: the cream should be put on one hour before the appointment, in the crease of each elbow and on the back of each hand. Wrap in cling film. Put a blob of the cream on the skin – do not rub it in. Cream can be purchased over the pharmacy counter, or if the blood test is requested by your GP, they will be able to write a prescription for you.
• Results for standard tests usually take 1 to 5 working days.
• Children need to be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
• Arriving late: patients arriving more than 10 minutes after their booked appointment will have to rebook.
• Fasting blood tests: please have nothing to to eat or drink except glasses of water 12 hours before the time of your appointment.
• Bruising may sometimes occur post-procedure.

Paediatric Virtual Wards: new service launches 26 February 2024

This exciting and innovative new service will allow the Paediatric team to remotely monitor a select group of babies, children and young people, with an appropriate diagnosis, from the comfort of their own home.

The virtual ward will be utilised for:

• Babies, children, young people who are deemed ready to step down from high dependency care – these patients will be supported in going home in a more timely manner
• Children and young people who would normally require admission for common respiratory conditions – community respiratory physiotherapists will work closely with parents and carers

The aim is to reduce time spend in hospital for families who are severely impacted each year by inpatient stays.

We are pleased to be one of the first Paediatric Units in the country to launch a service of this kind and look forward to supporting our patients and their families to remain at home as long as it is safe to do so.