What this means - A team of caregivers who are experts in treating pain are available at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. These pain specialists use a variety of advanced pain treatment methods which increase the patient's comfort level and increase the family's satisfaction level since the child is more comfortable.  

About the data - These data reflect the percentage of patients and families who responded "Yes, always" to the survey question, "Did the hospital staff do everything they could to help control your child's pain?" The response options for this question are: yes always; yes; somewhat; no.

Related dimensions of care:

What we're doing to provide the best care:

• At Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, there are 35 board-certified anesthesiologists with subspecialty training in pediatric anesthesiology. Most are multiple-board certified in areas such as pediatric medicine, critical care and pain management.  
• Anesthesiologists keep patients comfortable and safe during surgery and complex non-surgical procedures using a range of specialized medicines and equipment. Because children have different health care needs, experience sedating children is key to ensuring their safety. Sedatives are powerful medicines, and having a specialized, trained anesthesiologist at the bedside makes it safer for your child.
• Throughout the day, a Children's Hospital anesthesiologist may take one patient safely through a complex operation lasting 15 hours or care for 20 patients undergoing short procedures.
• At Children's Hospital, a pediatric anesthesiologist will sedate 200 to 1,400 children a year. To maintain performance at the highest level, it's important for a pediatric anesthesiologist to have experience in a setting like Children's that provides state-of-the-art care to a range of pediatric patients.
• Effective treatment of pain may require specific expertise in neonates, infants and children. The specialized treatments in pain management include administration of medications by epidural catheters, placement of medications into nerves to block pain, administering medications by patient and parent-controlled devices safely and effectively and coordination of complex combinations of pain treatment modalities, all with the aim of maximizing the speed of recovery and return to full function.
• Our Child Life specialists help calm and relax your child before and after a procedure. They offer distraction and relaxation techniques such as listening to music, watching movies, and playing with games or toys to help your child cope when faced with undergoing a procedure that requires anesthesia.
• We recognize that most patients and families have a lot of anxiety about surgery and anesthesia, and this anxiety is often disruptive to normal function before and after surgery. We use preoperative anxiolytic medication (medication to relax) for most of our patients to promote healthy and less traumatic recovery. Evidence has shown that this is the most effective way to decrease the patient's anxiety resulting in a smooth and rapid return to normal function after the procedure and at home thereafter.
• We conduct research focused on postoperative behavior disturbance and postoperative pain. We manage postoperative pain by administering pain relief medications while the patient is in surgery, as well as after surgery, using pediatric appropriate technologies like continuous epidurals and patient- controlled analgesia. 
• We have one of the few comprehensive multidisciplinary and multimodal pain treatment services in the nation. We have the best published treatment record for chronic pain conditions.
• Our focus on patient-centered care includes:
  • Encouraging partnerships with open, ongoing communication between family members and health care providers. Our Family Advisory Committee is made up of parents and hospital staff to improve communication, quality of care and hospital amenities.
  • Regularly surveying our patients and encouraging them to share their experiences and suggestions. 
  • Reviewing and implementing changes based on patient experience feedback.
  • Caring for healthy patients at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin Surgicenter where the focus is on comfort and convenience.
• Families traveling from long distances are encouraged to use our Family Accommodations Program to make travel arrangements and coordinate appointments. Children's Hospital has partnered with non-profit organizations like Ronald McDonald House and Kathy's House to offer comfortable, "home away from home" accommodations. Local hotel chains on our referral list also offer discounts for patient families. 

• Take a virtual tour, which will help prepare patients and families for the procedure and hospital stay.
• Follow all eating and drinking restrictions before surgery.

Referring physicians:

• Referring physicians can access our specialists for consultation or transport 24 hours a day. Call our physician referral line at (800) 266-0366.  
• Health care providers from outside of our southeastern Wisconsin service area are encouraged to use our web-based 
  e-Consult service. This service is available for non-urgent patient cases only and gives providers access to our specialists to review patient cases, obtain medical advice or second opinions, and receive care recommendations for rare symptoms and illnesses.
  e-Consult is not to be used by the general public, parents/guardians or families.
• Care guidelines for medical professionals
• Educational materials
  • Pediatric Rounds
  • Webcasts
• Pocket Directory

If you have questions about these data or information, email us or call (414) 266-6556.