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Paediatric Department

B15

Referrals

Acutely ill Children

GPs and ENPs should refer acutely ill children for same day assessment to the on call paediatric team, either directly on the team mobile or via the hospital switchboard. Please contact your practice manager or the hospital switchboard for details of the mobile number.

For urgent referrals and advice, please see information below.

Critically ill children being brought in by ambulance may be directed to the Emergency Department for initial assessment by the Paediatric Team.

Monday to Friday the majority of children will be assessed in the Paediatric Assessment Unit (PAU) which is based on the Children's ward - they may be observed in PAU for a period of time before a decision is made on whether admission is necessary. Out of hours, children will be admitted directly to the ward.

Children with abdominal pain, including possible appendicitis, should be referred to the paediatric team. Children with other surgical problems (e.g. urological or orthopaedic problems) should be referred directly to the appropriate surgical team. Children under the age of one year should be referred to the paediatric team for assessment - if surgery is needed, transfer to the care of the Paediatric Surgical team in Bristol may be necessary.

A number of children with complex medical problems and those with diabetes have ‘Direct Discussion' enabling their parents to contact the Paediatric Registrar direct for advice if their child is unwell.

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Neonatal referrals

For general enquiries:

For advice about a neonatal problem contact the Neonatal SHO on:

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Prolonged Jaundice

Babies with prolonged jaundice (> 14 days in term baby or 21 days for preterm babies born at less than 37 weeks) will be seen within 3 working days in children's outpatients.

GP referrals to our urgent Prolonged Jaundice clinic should be made via the NHS e-Referral Service system.

Referrals by other members of the primary care team such as Health Visitors can be made by phoning Childrens Outpatient Reception on 01225 824203. A date and time can be given immediately so preferably call in the presence of parents so an appointment time can be given immediately. A referral letter Is not needed but please note any important information in the child's red book. If a detailed referral is felt necessary this can be sent by email to the address below including the child's NHS number and parent contact details.

An information leaflet about jaundice is available here:

Prolonged jaundice in babies

.

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Outpatient referrals

Referrals for routine and urgent paediatric outpatient appointments should be made via the NHS e-Referral Service system. All referrals are triaged daily by a Consultant Paediatrician and referrals for specialist clinics may be seen for initial assessment in a general paediatric clinic if appropriate. If a child is already known to the Paediatric Department please state the name of the Consultant they have seen previously.

However, not all referrals sent in as 'urgent' are deemed so on triage so some appointments may be made within 2 weeks or managed through the routine system. Please manage parental expectations appropriately.

Once a referral has been made, enquiries regarding appointments should be made to the Appointments Centre:

Paediatric Phlebotomy

Referrals for phlebotomy for children under 16 years of age should be emailed to:
ruh-tr.childrensOPDNurses@nhs.net (Sister Caroline Cramb)

Please include the child's NHS number and parent contact details.

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Urgent advice

Requests for more urgent advice should be made by email or phone. A mobile number for consultant advice and guidance is available to healthcare professionals. Please contact your practice manager or the hospital switchboard for details.

A consultant paediatrician will answer calls between 9am – 5pm Monday to Friday, and emails will be checked daily between Monday midday and Friday midday. Please include the child's NHS number and parent contact details.

Depending on the nature of the request, we may offer advice on patient management, a telephone consultation with the family, or offer an appointment within an appropriate time frame. Children who need seeing urgently may be seen within 24 hours in a consultant clinic or in PAU. Any other appointments will need to be made via eRS.

Referrals for phlebotomy for children under 16 years of age should be emailed to:
ruh-tr.childrensOPDNurses@nhs.net (Sister Caroline Cramb)

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Pharmacy

Carol Jackson is the department pharmacist. Please contact her on:

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Paediatric Allergy Team

GP referrals to our Paediatric Allergy Service should be made via the NHS e-Referral Service system – the Allergy RAS.

Referrals from other health care professionals such as Health Visitor, School Nurse, Dietitian referrals can be made via our generic email address:

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Paediatric Diabetes Team

Referral and Ongoing Care for Children with Suspected Diabetes
South West Paediatric Diabetes Regional Network

The paediatric diabetes office based in the Children's Centre is staffed Monday to Friday 8.30am to 5pm. Paediatric Diabetes Specialist Nurses are available for advice in office hours.

For out of hours advice contact the Paediatric Registrar 01225 428331 bleep 7202.

Contact the team administrator for paediatric diabetes clinic enquiries including cancellation & rescheduling of appointments on:

Note:
All children and young people aged under 18 years of age suspected as having developed diabetes should be referred for same day assessment by the duty paediatric team at the RUH. Referral should not be delayed for blood tests or other investigations (e.g. glucose tolerance test).

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Paediatric Epilepsy Team

Primary Care referrals

GP referrals to our paediatric outpatient clinics should be made via the NHS e-Referral Service system.

If you need more urgent advice, please follow the information above in the urgent advice section

Information for patients and their families can be found on the paediatric epilepsy page:-

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Paediatric Oncology Team

or contact the Paediatric Registrar:

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Community Child Health Services

Referrals for Community Child Health Services should be made to Community Child Health Department, Newbridge Hill, Bath, BA1 3QE

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CAMHS (Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services)

Referrals for CAMHS (Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services) should be sent direct to the appropriate CAMHS team.

BANES – BANES CAMHS team,
Temple House,
Temple Court,
Keynsham,
Bristol
BS31 1HA

Wiltshire - Melksham CAMHS team,
Melksham Hospital,
Spa Road,
Melksham,
Wiltshire
SN12 7NZ

For Referral criteria see :

For BaNES and Wiltshire CAMHS

Somerset CAMHS

Bristol/South Glos

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