Lakeland Regional Health and Nemours Children’s Specialty Care have long worked together to provide expert inpatient and outpatient pediatric care for families in Polk county. So when the COVID-19 pandemic required healthcare facilities to limit in-person appointments and elective surgeries, the two organizations coordinated their efforts to keep their youngest patients safe. As Florida begins Phase I of its reopening plans, the two organizations are again coordinating efforts to ensure that patients and families feel comfortable returning to the Carol Jenkins Barnett Pavilion for Women and Children at Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center for elective surgeries and in-person doctor appointments. New precautions and processes are in place to keep patients, families and providers safe. Today, elective procedures are once again being performed and specialists are welcoming patients back.
“We are pleased to resume elective pediatric surgeries and procedures, and encourage parents to not delay vital medical care for their child,” said Lori Shea, Lakeland Regional Health Associate Vice President, Women’s and Children’s Services. “We are so grateful for our collaboration with Nemours Children’s Health System, particularly during this COVID-19 pandemic. They have been great healthcare leaders with whom to share ideas, establish policies and continue to provide exceptional care to the children and families of our community.”
Jason Buchino, site administrator at Nemours Children’s Specialty Care, Lakeland, noted the two organizations share a concern for making sure children are receiving needed care. “Nemours Children’s Health and Lakeland Regional Health have worked together to ensure that care that could wait was paused during the ‘safer at home’ orders and care that couldn’t wait was provided either in person or through a live video visit using the Nemours CareConnect app,” said Buchino. “Now that it is safe to do so, we’re rescheduling families that had to postpone in-person appointments and elective procedures. We can’t wait to see our patients.”
As the clinic resumes a full schedule of in-person visits, it is doing so with safety in mind. Patient appointments are staggered to control the number of people in waiting areas and prominent signage reminds families to maintain at least six feet of social distance. Visitor restrictions are continuing, with only one parent or guardian per patient and no siblings allowed at a visit. Certified Child Life specialists are available to help make things easier for children experiencing a hospital stay.
Measures our facilities are taking to keep children and families safe
- Screening at entrances for fever and illness
- Requiring every person age 2 and older to wear a mask from entry to exit
- Changing patient flows in waiting areas and exam rooms to maintain social distancing
- Performing frequent deep cleans
- Offering a Call-Ahead Service for the Children’s Emergency Department. Parents can call (863) 687-1414 before bringing their child in to register and be screened. Parents will be given a set arrival time so they can be escorted into an assigned room. To learn more about this service, visit https://mylrh.org/news/lrhdebutsedcallaheadservice/
To schedule an appointment at Nemours Specialty Care, Lakeland, call (407) 650-7715.
About Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center
Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center is Florida’s fifth largest hospital. Founded in 1916 as Morrell Memorial Hospital, this 864-bed, comprehensive tertiary referral hospital operates the Jack and Tina Harrell Family Institute for Advanced Cardiovascular Medicine; a Level II Trauma Center; the Carol Jenkins Barnett Pavilion for Women and Children, which includes a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit; and the Bannasch Institute for Advanced Rehabilitation Medicine. The Medical Center holds high-level accreditations for its Certified Comprehensive Center and Chest Pain Center. Three hybrid operating rooms and a catheterization lab offer patients the least invasive surgeries possible and enhanced safety. The Medical Center is home to the nation’s busiest single site Emergency Department and handles over 3,000 trauma visits annually.
About Nemours Children’s Health System
Nemours is an internationally recognized children’s health system that owns and operates the two free-standing children’s hospitals: the Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Del., and Nemours Children’s Hospital in Orlando, Fla., along with outpatient facilities in five states, delivering pediatric primary, specialty and urgent care. Nemours also powers the world’s most-visited website for information on the health of children and teens, KidsHealth.org, and offers on-demand, online video patient visits through Nemours CareConnect. Nemours ReadingBrightstart.org is a program dedicated to preventing reading failure in young children, grounded in Nemours’ understanding that child health and learning are inextricably linked, and that reading level is a strong predictor of adult health.
Established as The Nemours Foundation through the legacy and philanthropy of Alfred I. duPont, Nemours provides pediatric clinical care, research, education, advocacy and prevention programs to families in the communities it serves.