Patients and Families

G.) Before the Surgery or Procedure

Getting There

Dress your child in loose-fitting, two-piece clothing such as sweats. If you wish, you may bring your child to the center in pajamas.

Allow adequate time for travel and parking. Arriving late may cause delays in the surgery schedule for your child, and his or her procedure may need to be rescheduled for another day.

Park in the Penn Garage, and bring your parking ticket to be validated when you check in to receive a discounted parking rate for the first 24 hours after arrival to the hospital.

At Children's

The nursing staff will check your child’s height, weight and vital signs, and will review preoperative information and consents.

A member of the Anesthesia Team will speak with you.

One parent must remain with your child at all times. Parents of children admitted for diagnostic procedures will be given specific information about the procedure being performed.

After you have met with the health care team members, you and your child may visit the playroom until your child’s surgeon is ready.

Several steps will be taken to ensure your child's safety.

You will be asked to sign a consent form, which verfies that you and your doctor have discussed the surgery that is to be performed on your child, the expectations that you have of each other and the risks associated with the surgery.
The staff members responsible for your child's care will verify your child's identification by name and birth date, the specific surgery he or she is having, and the part of your child's body on which the surgery is to be performed. You will be asked these questions several times. The staff members will double-check the answers you give them against documents provided by your doctor and any preoperative assessments.
Depending on the type of surgery your child is having, the surgeon or another member of your health care team will mark the correct location on your child's body where the procedure is to be performed. Called side-site marking, this is a critical step in ensuring your child's safety. For example, if your child is having a right-ear tube placed, the surgeon will make a mark on the right ear.
After your child is asleep, but before beginning your child's surgery, a "time out" with the surgical team is taken. During the time out, the members of the health care team again verify the correct procedure and the correct side-site on your child.

Next: Frequently Asked Questions

Last Update
May 7, 2009

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