Paediatric Cardiac Nurse Specialist Service

What is the Paediatric Cardiac Nurse Specialist Service?

It is a designated team of eight senior paediatric cardiac nurses. Their common goal is to provide ongoing emotional support, information and practical advice for children and teenagers with a heart condition and their families.

The Paediatric Cardiac Nurse Specialist Team input starts at diagnosis of the condition.  This can be either before or after birth development and carries on to teenage years (transition service) and transfer to adult services.

What kinds of support can the Paediatric Cardiac Nurse Specialist Service provide?

• A telephone advice line available from 08.00am-16.30pm Monday - Friday (excluding bank holidays).
• Education on heart conditions and interventions used to treat / manage them.
• Support for children and their families at point of diagnosis.
• Information about national and local support groups.
• A link with other children and  families who have had similar experiences.
• Lead preadmission clinics to prepare families for cardiac surgery and cardiac catheter procedures.
• Assist families, where possible, using  charitable resources to help with hospital expenses during a hospital stay.
• Support and education  during your hospital stay.
• Advice and guidance on lifestyle issues.
• Advice and guidance to schools.
• Management of patients on Warfarin and run advice and dosing service for families that self - test their INR at home.
• Advice, guidance and support with feeding issues/concerns, using Cardiac Feeding Clinic input when appropriate.
• Support to empower teenagers with cardiac conditions through our Young Person’s Clinic.
• Support teenagers when making the transition into adult services.
• Provide support with bereavement.
• Support, information giving and counselling service to antenatal families.
• Liaison with the Manchester Cardiac Nurse Specialist Team to help with an equitable service across the Northwest.