Sick kids have more space at BHS

BALLARAT Health Services Paediatric Day Medical Unit is open for business.

Paediatrician Dr Louise Du Plessis said the unit is the final phase of the hospital’s ward three-year development.

“It’s all about looking after sick children in an appropriate environment,” she said. “This specific unit is for the less unwell children who are likely to go home in 24 hours.”

Kids who present to the Emergency Department and don’t need surgery or who aren’t seriously unwell will now be treated in a dedicated area on the Children’s Ward.

Carolyn Robertson, Director of Women’s and Children’s Services said BHS can now better support families with children who require a short period of observation and treatment.

The idea behind the new space is that children are not little adults and may not have the same ability to cope with the busyness, noise and drama that goes on in the Emergency Department.

“They are a group of patients that often need specialised care, and up here in the Day Unit we have specialised nursing expertise,” said Dr Du Plessis.

Features of the new unit include two dedicated isolation rooms for infectious disease, a state-of-the-art workstation for PDMU staff, and two separate spaces for concurrent treatments.

The isolation rooms for infectious diseases such as gastroenteritis are used to protect the other kids on the ward from communicable illness.

An adolescent treatment room recognises that children have completely different needs in their age groups.

“Teenagers need their own space with a bit more privacy and they need age appropriate distractions so separating them makes good sense,” Dr Du Plessis said.