Going Home

Your Child’s Homecoming Will Bring Its Own Set of Adjustments

The extent of these adjustments will depend on:

• The length of their stay
• The seriousness of their condition
• Changes in physical abilities or appearance
• Continued medication and their effects
• The child’s need for ongoing care or rehabilitation
• Changes in behavior and emotional reactions to the experience

Before Your Child is Discharged

In some cases, you may need to do as much planning to go home as you did ahead of time. Make sure you know all about any after-care needs. To help smooth the way, ask about:

• Instructions for food, medicine, wound care, and activity
• Signs or symptoms that would require immediate medical attention
• Schooling arrangements, any needed changes
• Follow-up appointments with doctors
• Rehab options, if needed

If your child will be dependent on supportive technology, either for the short or long term, you will need to make plans well in advance of discharge. The discharge coordinator will help plan for:

• Learning how to operate and care for special equipment
• Modifying your home, perhaps by adding ramps or extra electrical capacity
• Arranging necessary in-home services

Learn about G-Tube Care   Caring for a Child with a Tracheostomy

When bringing home your infant or young child, follow these car seat safety guidelines.

UR Medicine Home Care Pediatric Program

If your child is in need of home care, UR Medicine Home Care’s pediatric program can provide supportive, preventative, rehabilitative, acute and complex care for children from birth though 18 living in Monroe or Wayne Counties. We treat every child and their family with compassion and respect, and our clinicians are experts in their fields.

We have RNs, Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapists, Child Life, Music Therapy, Social Work, and a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. We can provide infusion and lab draws, wound care, ostomy and diabetic teaching in the comfort and safety of your own home.

There is nothing more important than the health and well-being of your child, and it is our privilege to help care for them.

Once You Are Home

Some children return to their normal daily routines quite easily, but some children do not. A child may:

• Regress to an earlier stage of behavior
• Have sleep disturbances or trouble sleeping
• Act defiantly or aggressively
• Not want to give up being the center of attention and may cling to “sick” role

In addition, teens may worry about:

• Getting caught up with school
• What to tell their friends/teachers/neighbors about their experience
• Changes in their appearance or abilities

You can help by:

• Allowing your child or teen to express anger, frustration, or sadness and offering reassurance
• Not leaving your child for long periods of time or overnight until they are resettled
• Returning the child or teen to their regular routine as soon as possible
• Giving your child responsibilities that match their abilities
• Encouraging your children to write stories, draw pictures, journal as a way to make sense of their experiences
• Encouraging your child or teen to take a role in the care at home, such as helping change bandages
• Reinforcing with your teen it's okay to ask for reassurance/comfort that they might ordinarily think they are too old for
• Prompting your teen to make a list of questions or concerns that they want to share with you, their doctors, or their teachers
• Encouraging siblings to share their feelings and ask questions
• Communicating with the schools (both for the patient and the siblings) about any changes