Are caregivers allowed during a pediatric transplant?

Are caregivers allowed during a pediatric transplant?

In pediatrics, we always encourage a caregiver to be with them. We often allow multiple family members to be there on the day of the transplant, because it’s a big occasion. We often try to have a little bit of fanfare and fun around that because it is a big, a big occasion, and we want them to understand this is momentous. It's important.

So yes, we welcome them to be there. And we encourage a caregiver to stay with a patient that's in the hospital at all times. So if there's two parents or additional family support that comes to stay with patients, I also encourage them to take shifts to give themselves a break and rest, because staying in the hospital, it's hard to sleep, especially when you're sleeping in a sofa bed or a chair that folds out into a better sleeping on a chair itself.

You need to take care of yourself, because when your child's ready to leave the hospital, if you're worn thin, you're not going to be ready to take care of their needs at home where you're not going to have a nurse that's going to be there at all hours to help take care of those supports and those needs as well.

So yes, we do have family members and other caregivers that stay with the children. They need to understand what the child's needs are. They need to be willing to alert us if they see something that's concerning or new to them, and we're here to help explain to them what it is that they're seeing, if it's something that's expected, if it's worrisome or not, and what we're doing about it to make sure that things are safe and that we're focusing on safety and comfort for the patient.

As a parent myself, you know, you will wear yourself thin and completely give up everything and all of your own needs in order to take care of your child. But you've seen these parents, and these caregivers do need to take care of themselves because their child needs them to be functional. If they wear themselves out to the point of breaking, they're not able to provide that support that they need. So they've kind of self-defeating why they're trying to be there in the first place.

So I do encourage them to take time away, take time for themselves, make sure they're getting rest, getting some respite themselves because these days are marathon stays.