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Your Hospital Visit Preparing For Your Visit Hospitalization can be stressful and frightening under any circumstances for both children and their families. Please be assured that we will do everything possible to make sure you and your child feel safe, comfortable and included. It is our intention to provide you with the information that you, as family members, need to feel comfortable as parnters and decision-makers in your child's care. The more you know about the hospital, the better you can help your child be prepared and feel at ease. This section of our Web site provides information on how to make your child's stay comfortable and will help answer your questions about your child's visit. Ask questions about procedures and medical teams. If you need more information or have concerns and worries, please let us know. Communicate with the team. Tell the staff about your child's likes, dislikes, routines and how he typically copes with upsetting situations. When your child's attending physician makes daily rounds, this is an excellent time for you to be involved in information sharing and participating in yoru child's plan of care. Support your child. It is frightening to see your child sick or hurt. As a parent, your voice and touch is very important. Provide your child comforting words and a soothing touch. Ask your child's nurse what else you can do to help your child feel better. Encourage your child to ask questions and express feelings. Communication with your child is very important Understand your child. When in the hospital, your child may act very different than he does at home. It is normal for children to be more fussy, whiney or irritable than usual. These behaviors are typically very temporary and are reactions to stressful events. Let your child know it is okay to cry and that his/her feelings are normal. Prepare your child for what they may see, feel, or experience. Explain that the medical staff is there to help. Children often wonder about what is going to happen to them. Talk with your child about their hospital stay and provide honest, sensitive and age-appropriate information. Family Centered Care MUSC Children's Hospital believes that family centered care is an important part of what we do. Family centered care means patients, their families, doctors, nurses and other health care professionals form a partnership that benefits everyone. A "family member" is recognized as anyone whom patients regard as significant in their lives. Families are not considered visitors, but essential participants in care and decisions that affect the total healing of the child. The components of family centered care are: respect and dignity, information sharing, participation and collaboration. To learn more about our committment to family-centered care, click here. The following links provide preparation information specific to your child's age. Hospital Stay For... Infants Toddlers Preschoolers School-age Teenagers Learn more > 20 Tips to Help Prevent Medical Errors in Children (Source: Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality)

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