CHOP at Penn Medicine Chester County Hospital

Pediatric services at Penn Medicine Chester County Hospital

Board-certified pediatricians, pediatric specialists, neonatologists and advanced practice providers from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) work alongside staff at Penn Medicine Chester County Hospital (CCH) to provide exceptional care to infants, children and teens in Chester County, PA.

Care is provided as part of an ongoing pediatric alliance between CHOP and Penn Medicine; drawing the best from both groups of clinicians – world-class pediatric experts from CHOP and dedicated, local staff who have built long-term relationships with families.

CHOP pediatric services available at Penn Medicine Chester County Hospital include:

• Pediatric inpatient care and monitoring by experienced CHOP pediatric hospitalists
• Coordination and on-site access to pediatric emergency services
• Inpatient newborn care and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)
• Pediatric specialty consultation, testing and imaging

The partnership between CHOP and CCH brings the best of academic medicine – cutting-edge research, standardized clinical pathways that ensure consistency of care, and innovative quality improvement projects – close to home for families in Chester County. Together, we elevate the care your child has access to, leading to improved outcomes and a better quality of life for your family.

Inpatient pediatric care

CHOP provides a team of pediatric hospitalists on-site 24/7 to care for children and adolescents who are admitted to the pediatric inpatient unit at Chester County Hospital. Pediatric hospitalists – all of whom are board certified in pediatrics by the American Board of Pediatrics and certified in Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) – are attending physicians who specialize in the care of hospitalized infants, children and teens.

Children may require hospitalization for a wide range of illnesses and injuries, from respiratory and digestive issues to bone, joint or nerve injuries. Together, our teams are equipped to provide the best possible care for your child, close to home. In the event your child has a more serious issue that requires highly specialized care, transport to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia can be arranged in partnership with community physicians.

A pediatric hospitalist is always on-site, providing:

• Around-the-clock evaluation and treatment for your child, and the ability to respond quickly to any emergencies that arise
• Close coordination with pediatric specialists and your child’s primary care physician
• Easy access to parents and families to answer questions and discuss your child’s illness with you
• Consultation in the emergency room as requested, 24/7

Depending on your child’s length of stay in the hospital, more than one member of the CHOP team may be involved in their care. Physicians will coordinate with each other on daily rounds, share information with you and provide a consistent approach to your child’s care and treatment. Once your child is well enough to leave the hospital, this team will coordinate with your child’s pediatrician, specialist or family physician to ensure consistency in their ongoing care.

Emergency care for kids

CHOP and CCH staff understand that emergency treatment and admission to the hospital can be frightening for children and parents. When your child needs to go to the Emergency Department (ED), you want to know they’ll receive outstanding, timely care delivered by a skilled clinical team. CHOP providers are available 24/7 in CCH’s ED to provide consultation, and are the primary attending physicians in the ED for pediatric patients (aged 12 and younger) from 3 p.m. to 1 a.m. each day, when children most frequently visit the ED.

No matter what emergency care your child needs, our team will work together to ensure the best care for your child and support for your family.

We encourage parents to communicate openly with staff, be involved in your child’s care and tell us how we can best meet your physical and emotional needs.

Newborn and NICU care

Board-certified neonatologists and certified neonatal nurse practitioners from CHOP provide high-quality, specialized newborn and neonatal intensive care to babies at CCH. Our team collaborates with families and primary care physicians to ensure every newborn receives the care they need, backed by the resources of CHOP – a world leader in neonatal medicine – and the experience, comfort and convenience provided at a community hospital.

Some of the babies born here each year are born prematurely, experience respiratory problems at birth, or require additional treatment or observation due to other health complications.

For these most vulnerable patients, CHOP clinicians also provide 24/7 care and services to babies in the Level III Moore Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at CCH, including:

• Comprehensive respiratory and feeding support
• Specialty and multidisciplinary evaluations
• Advanced testing and imaging
• Referrals to specialists as needed

Pediatric specialty consultations

Select pediatric specialty services from CHOP are also available as part of our collaboration with Chester County Hospital, including:

• Pediatric cardiology services, consultation and evaluation of cardiac testing (such as echocardiography and electrocardiogram)
• EEG and advanced neuromonitoring capabilities
• Pediatric radiology services, providing pediatric expertise in evaluating specialized diagnostic studies including neonatal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)