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1st
appeared 2 June 1999
Patients Welcomed Back to Pediatrics' Cheerful
6th Floor at UCSF
Brightly colored doorways capped by sculptured dolls; light, cheerful rooms; murals and
drawings along the walls and up the stairs -- Long Hospital's 6th floor is unmistakably a
children's space. The newly renovated pediatric inpatient unit re-opened with a gala
ribbon cutting on Tuesday, May 25. It was a preview for staff, physicians, supporters and
some of the families whose children would move into the bright new rooms the next day.
The remodeling completes the renovation of the 60-bed general pediatrics section of Lucile
Packard Children's Hospital at UCSF. A cheerful, muraled stairway links "6 Long"
with the children's unit on "7 Long," which was remodeled a year earlier with
similar decor in a global village theme to appeal to older children.
The Lucile Packard "children's hospital within a hospital" at the Medical Center
at UCSF now includes these two general pediatrics floors, with adjacent pediatric
intensive care units; the neonatal intensive care nursery linked to the Birth Center on
the 15th floor; the pediatric surgical suite on the 4th floor; and the second floor of
UCSF's Ambulatory Care Center, which is dedicated to pediatric outpatient clinics.
Along with facilities and services to meet medical needs, the complex also includes a
playroom and a family lounge on the 6th floor and a schoolroom, teen center and
rehabilitation gym on the 7th floor -- amenities to help families keep their child's life
as normal as possible during a hospital stay.
"We're delighted with the remodel of these pediatrics floors. The design is a great
morale booster for the children, the families and the staff," said Inez Wieging,
patient care manager for general pediatrics. Another morale booster: a TV with VCR and a
Nintendo game system have been installed in every room.
Several important additions will help the staff provide optimum patient care, Wieging said
-- including a 16-channel telemetry unit that allows for continuous monitoring of
patients' cardiac, respiratory and other vital signs while they are in their rooms.
Several rooms have sound-monitoring systems so that staff at the nursing station can
listen in for signs of distress in a child who cannot push a call button for help. A new
nurse call and tracking system will make it easier for patients and parents to call in to
the main desk with specific requests, and make it easier for nurses to be sure that
patients are getting timely and appropriate help.
Links:
Lucile Packard Children's Hospital
Nicky P. Leaves Light-hearted
Legacy to UCSF
Source: Janet Basu, News Services |
