Information for parents, and carers
Visits for minor surgical procedures are usually carried out within a day. We have a dedicated area providing care from admission to discharge on the ground floor of the hospital.
Admission times are batched to further reduce the time your child needs to be in the hospital. These times are:
- 07:30
- 09:30
- 12:00
- 14:00
Starvation and fasting rules for the admissions times are below.
Subheading: Starvation and fasting rules for children up to 1 years undergoing a General Anaesthetic
| To Come In Time | Breakfast/Solid Food | Fluids |
|---|---|---|
| 07:30 to 09:29 | No food after midnight. Last Formula Milk Feed finished by 04:30. Last Breast Milk Feed finished by 05:30. | Please encourage your child to drink WATER ONLY. (can drink unlimited water up to admission time). |
| 09:30 to 11:59 | No food after midnight. Last Formula Milk Feed finished by 06:00. Last Breast Milk Feed finished by 07:00. | Please encourage your child to drink WATER ONLY. (can drink unlimited water up to admission time). |
| 12:00 to 13:59 (12.00pm to 1.59pm) | Light breakfast i.e. cereal or toast must be finished before 07:00. Last Formula Milk Feed finished by 09:00. Last Breast Milk Feed finished by 10:00. | Please encourage your child to drink WATER ONLY. (can drink unlimited water up to admission time). |
| 14:00 to 17:00 (2.00pm to 5.00pm) | Light breakfast i.e. cereal or toast must be finished before 08:00. Last Formula Milk Feed finished by 11:00. Last Breast Milk Feed finished by 12:00. | Please encourage your child to drink WATER ONLY. (can drink unlimited water up to admission time). |
Starvation and fasting rules for children over 1 years undergoing a General Anaesthetic
| To Come In Time | Breakfast/Solid Food | Fluids |
|---|---|---|
| 07:30 to 09:29 | No food after midnight | Please encourage your child to drink WATER ONLY. (can drink unlimited water up to admission time). |
| 09:30 to 11:59 | No food after midnight. | Please encourage your child to drink WATER ONLY. (can drink unlimited water up to admission time). |
| 12:00 to 13:59 (12.00pm to 1.59pm) | Light breakfast i.e. cereal or toast must be finished before 07:00 | Please encourage your child to drink WATER ONLY. (can drink unlimited water up to admission time). |
| 14:00 to 17:00 2.00pm to 5.00pm) | Light breakfast i.e. cereal or toast must be finished before 07:00 | Please encourage your child to drink WATER ONLY. (can drink unlimited water up to admission time). |
What you need to know
- Please read your patient letter carefully as this has all the important information you need before the day.
- You should receive a reminder call from the Day Case Surgery team 72 hours before your appointment. If you haven’t spoken to the team by this time then please call 0151 252 5455.
- Check your arrival time on your patient letter, please arrive 10 minutes early for your appointment if possible, it will mean less time waiting.
- Due to limited waiting space, we ask that where possible, one parent or carer accompanies their child to the appointment.
- You can bring some home comforts like your phone and favourite toy but please don’t bring anything larger than a small bag.
- Please do not bring a onesie. Please ensure that your child does not have any make up, nail varnish or shellac nails on.
- Female patients over the age of 12 will be required to provide a urine sample for a pregnancy test the day of surgery. You can bring a sample from home on the day, sample pots can be provided by your GP, Pharmacists or collected from the hospital.
Covid-19 rules
If your child tests positive for covid or someone in the household has tested positive, the following will apply:
- Positive patient with no symptoms- operation would be cancelled for 10 days
- Positive patient with symptoms (Following respiratory guidance prior to General Anaesthetic) operation would be cancelled for 4 weeks
- House-hold contact – Operation would be cancelled for 10 days
Before your admission date, you will receive a letter which contains the above and further important information that will help you prepare for the day.
We’re here to help If you don’t understand something or have a question about the procedure then please call 0151 252 5455
Painbusting – feeling sick or sore after an operation It’s important for us to be able to help children manage any pain or discomfort after their procedure and we encourage children to tell us if they don’t feel well when they wake up. As part of preparing your child for their operation, please download and read our Painbusters booklet, a cartoon guide to managing pain, designed for the whole family.