Welcome to Bergholt Ward

All members of Ipswich Hospital staff should wear an identity badge at all times and all those caring for children and young people should have a duck on the badge. If anyone without a name badge approaches you or your child please contact ward staff. Where possible you should try to accompany your child if they go off the ward for additional investigations.

Student nurses work on the wards and have a different type of name badge to hospital staff, but they must wear a badge.

All hospital inpatients must wear a name bracelet at all times. If your child’s name bracelet is lost or illegible please let the ward staff know so it can be replaced.

The hospital has a security team on site at all times who are here to protect patients, visitors and staff. If you have security concerns please speak to ward staff.

The main door to the ward is locked. We ask that you press the buzzer to come in, but please be patient if the door is not opened straight away, as staff may be busy with patients.

When you wish to leave the ward please ask the ward staff and they will open the door.

Visiting for parents is not restricted so you may visit at any time. Visiting time for anyone other than parents is 2-7 pm. We ask that there are no more than two visitors at any one time.

Please remember that we cannot be responsible for children who are visiting, including brothers and sisters. All children must be supervised by an adult at all times.

Visitors who are unwell themselves should not visit the ward, in order to protect vulnerable children.

We are able to offer overnight accommodation for one adult only. We will provide you with a fold-down bed and bed linen. Curtains around the bed must remain open so that we can safely observe all the children and young people on the ward. Before breakfast please fold up your bed and linen. If you need any assistance with this please ask a member of our staff.

We will provide breakfast for resident parents and all meals for pregnant and breastfeeding mothers.

Meal times are:
Breakfast 8 am
Lunch 12 noon
Dinner 5pm

If your child has specific dietary requirements or allergies, please ensure that you inform staff as soon as possible.

We like to promote meal times as social times and as such have a dining area. Where possible, we like to encourage the children, except for those in the side rooms, to eat with each other in the dining area.

Please encourage your child to wash their hands before eating. Hand wipes are available – please ask your child’s nurse.

All wards and departments are fitted with heat and smoke detectors. In the event of the alarms being activated please remain calm and await directions from ward staff.

This hospital is a smoke-free zone. Smoking is permitted in designated areas only. Please be aware that cigarette butts are poisonous to young children. If you would like advice on giving up smoking, please ask your child’s nurse.

The hospital has a policy of charging for car parking. We are able to provide car parking permits to parents which will reduce the cost for parking. You will need to purchase a ticket for £4.00 and bring it to the ward along with your car registration number and we will provide you with a permit for 72 hours.

If your child will be in hospital for longer than this, you will need to purchase tickets to the value of £8.00 and this will pay for a permit for one week. Please speak to the ward staff if you have any problems with parking – other than finding a space!

If you are a blue badge holder there is no additional car parking charge but there are limited spaces. You will need to display your blue badge in accordance with current regulations.

We are committed to providing a clean environment for you and your child. We ask that you work with us to maintain such an environment and prevent the spread of infection.

Information is available throughout the ward indicating how we all can contribute to the prevention of infection. Please use the alcohol gel on your hands when you enter and leave the ward. Please ensure that you wash your hands after visiting the lavatory and after changing nappies. If you have concerns about infection control please speak to a member of our ward staff.

Please encourage your child to wash their hands before eating. Hand wipes are available – please ask your child’s nurse.

You can also assist us with maintaining a clean ward by limiting personal possessions and ensuring that things are kept in the locker and not on the floor. Please keep your child’s bedspace clear of clutter to provide access in case of an emergency.

We work closely with our infection control team to monitor all children with infections.

We believe that the participation of a family in the care of a child is vitally important in aiding diagnosis, treatment and recovery. We do not wish to take over the care of your child entirely. Clearly there are some aspects of your child’s care that we need to undertake but we want you to feel involved in as many aspects as possible. For example, if you are going to be resident with your child you might Iike to provide for their hygiene needs such as bathing and nappy changing.

Please discuss with the nurse who admits your child which aspects of care you would like to undertake.

An agreement on care will be completed with you as part of your child’s admission and will be reviewed daily.

You will need day and night clothes for yourself and your child. You will also need to provide all the toiletries that you or your child may need, such as nappies, wipes, toothbrush and toothpaste etc.

We have a limited supply of infant formulas. If we do not have the milk that your baby has, you will need to bring it in. We will supply Milton tanks for sterilising baby bottles.

Please remember to bring any special toys or comforters such as teddies, blankets and dummies so that your child has some comfort from home. If your child has a red book from the health visitor (health record), please bring it in so that we can keep your child’s records updated.

You may like to bring something for yourself to do, such as books and magazines. You should not keep valuables on the ward as we cannot be held responsible for their safekeeping.

We ask that you keep the amount of personal belongings to a minimum as we do not have room on the ward to accommodate large amounts. Please ensure all large bags and suitcases are sent home.

There is a playroom on the ward for the younger children with a play team who will help prepare children for procedures and provide distraction. The playroom is not staffed all day every day and your child remains your responsibility; therefore they must be supervised if the playroom is unattended.

There is a conservatory for adolescents where activities suitable for those aged ten years and over take place. We ask that you do not let younger children use this room.

Each bed has a TV. This service is free for those under 16, and is available between 7 am and 7 pm. Call the operator using the handset to register the TV for your child. Cards for using the internet and the telephone are available from the machines in the main corridors. TV can be used after 7 pm but only with a card. Games are also free during the day.

The school room is staffed with a teacher and teaching assistant from Monday to Friday during term times. The staff will liaise with each school-age child each day and, where applicable, for those who are likely to stay for more than a few days, they will contact school to ensure that your child is keeping up with their classmates.

There is a parents’ room available and children are not allowed to use this. Facilities for making hot drinks are available and there is a microwave for parents to use. Any hot drinks must be in an insulated cup with a lid. These are available in the kitchen and the parents’ room.

Mobile phones, smart phones and tablets used for photography can be used in the hospital’s main entrance areas, corridors and restaurants. The only place on Bergholt Ward they should be used is in the quiet room or parents room. Parents, patients and staff should not use mobile phones on the ward or clinical areas without permission. Staff use iPod devices for recording observations and the camera and recording functions are permanently deactivated. If you are planning to use a phone charger or your own laptop computer, it will need to be checked by our electricians before it is used. Please speak to ward staff to arrange for your chargers to be checked. Please keep mobile phones on silent and be considerate of children sleeping nearby.

We remind all parents, visitors and patients that photographs are not to be taken on mobile phones while on the ward.

There is a fridge for parents to use in the main kitchen – please label all your own items and dispose of any remaining items when your child is discharged.

There is a newsagent, clothes shop and coffee shop close to South Reception. Visitors are also able to use the main hospital canteen (Courtyard Restaurant). The opening times for these facilities are on the notice board by the main door.

Each team of doctors does a ward round every day. The ward round for children under the care of the paediatric doctors starts at around 9.30 am.

The other teams of doctors and surgeons will also visit daily but we are unable to predict the times. Please speak with the nurse looking after your child if they have not been seen.

We begin to plan for your child’s discharge home as soon as they are admitted. We will provide medicines for your child to take home and staff will explain how and when to give them and give advice about what the drugs do. Please ensure that medicines are kept out of the reach of children at home. We do not supply paracetamol or ibuprofen as these are readily available from pharmacies and supermarkets.

If the doctors wish to see your child again we will arrange for an outpatient appointment. If the appointment is for a few days’ time, we may ask you to telephone the ward for the details or we will send the appointment to you in the post.

If you are unhappy with any aspect of care or the ward environment please speak to the nurse in charge or the ward sister.

Should you wish to speak to a member of the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) team, please speak to a member of our ward staff who will be happy to either provide you with a leaflet or can arrange for someone from the team to come and see you.

You may contact the PALS team by telephone if you wish on freephone 0800 3287624 or 01473 704781. There is an answerphone and the staff will call you back at the earliest opportunity during working hours.

You will be provided with a questionnaire when your child is admitted, please complete it before your child discharged. This feedback gives you the opportunity to highlight your experiences while on Bergholt Ward. We also welcome any ideas for improvement.

This is not an exhaustive list but may be useful to help understand some of the terms that we use. If you do not understand what the nurses and medical staff have said, please just ask and we will try to help.

• FBC Full blood count. This test tells us how many red and white blood cells there are which can indicate anaemia or infection.
• U&E Urea and electrolytes. This test gives an overview of the effectiveness of the kidneys.
• CRP C reactive protein – an indicator that the body is fighting an infection.
• LFT Liver function test. An overview of the effectiveness of the liver.
• NPA Naso-pharyngeal aspirate. This is the collection of secretions from the back of the nose to send to the lab for the identification of respiratory infection.
• LP Lumbar puncture. A sample of the fluid Which circulates around the brain and spine Which is taken from the base of the back.
• MSU Mid-stream specimen of urine. The collection of urine, either into a bag for babies or a pot for older children, which we can test on the ward or in the lab to indicate infection.
• ECG Electrocardiograph. A trace which shows the activity of the heart.
• EEG Electroencephalogram. A trace which shows the electrical activity of the brain.
• UTI Urinary tract infection.
• RSV Respiratory syncytial virus. A respiratory infection which we commonly see in the winter, particularly among babies.
• IV Intravenous.
• NGT Naso-gastric tube. This is a small, soft tube which is passed down the nose and into the stomach either for feeding or to empty the stomach.
• Sats Oxygen saturation monitoring. This is an indicator of whether we need to give supplementary oxygen.
• Pyrexia A high temperature.
• Apyrexia A normal temperature.
• Hypothermia A low temperature.
• PR Per rectum.