PEDIATRIC AND CHILD HEALTH DEPARTMENT MNH-MLOGANZILA

INTRODUCTION.

Department of Paediarics and child health have both specialized and superspecialised inpatient services and outpatient services.

The Department have three wards.

• General Paediarics ward
• Neonatal ward and NICU
• Kangaroo Mother Care ward.

1.1 General Paediaric ward

The general paediatrics ward is located in the 5^th floor with a bed capacity of 54. The ward is arranged in 9 rooms each room with 6 beds. All the rooms in the pediatric ward includes wall oxygen, suction machines, air conditioning, nurse call system. As a national hospital we receive patients from different part of the country. We have three firms (Firm II-IV) with 10 units and we are admitting patients in different units depending on the diagnosis/s for example Gastro and Infectious, Pulmonology and critical care, Dietetics and Malnutrition, Endocrinology, Cardiac, Nephrology, Rheumatology, Neurology, Dermatology and Hemato-oncology.

1.2 Neonatal ward/NICU

The department of Paediarics and child health have Neonatal ICU with necessary equipment’s to care newborn according to their needs. It is located with labor rooms and Obsetric theatres in the 2^nd floor. It belongs to Firm I.

Babies are admitted from within the hospital and referral from other hospitals. It has bed capacity of 46 (16 Incubators and 30 baby cots) and an isolation room with negative pressure for infectious patients.

Services provided in the neonatal unit/NICU include:

1. Care of low birth weight babies including premature and small for gestational age babies who may be normal or sick.
2. Normal term babies whose mothers are sick or not able to care for the babies
3. Babies with birth asphyxia and congenital anomalies
4. Babies with infections eg. pneumonia, septicemia, meningitis etc.
5. Babies with other complications of new born.

1.3 Kangaroo Mother Care ward.

Kangaroo mother care ward is located in the 4^th floor with bed capacity of 18. Babies are admitted from within the hospital (NICU) and from other hospitals as a continuum of care of premature babies.

Kangaroo clinics are conducted every Thursday in the 4^th floor where they are followed up until they graduate.

1.4 Outpatient department.

The Department have specialized and superspecialised outpatient clinics on daily basis from Monday to Saturday. The Outpatient Department is located in the 1^st floor. There are IPPM clinics conducted as scheduled

Each unit runs an outpatient clinic to follow up patients. Patients attending outpatient clinic include those discharged from the wards, walk in and new patients referred from other hospitals. The most common pediatric problems seen include viral illnesses, asthma, gastroenteritis, common skin conditions, neurology cases, malnutrition as well as children in need of HIV care.

1.5 Ward Rounds

Department of Paediatrics and Child health ward rounds are conducted on a daily basis by team of nurses, pharmacist, Intern doctors along with registrars/resident and specialist/s. This includes weekends and public holidays. Evening ward rounds are also done daily for the admitting wards.

1.6 Training/CME/Meetings

The department is involved in training of intern doctors, elective students and postgraduate MUHAS residents who are on rotations. As part of continuing education we conduct CME sessions every Thursday. We conduct daily educative clinical meetings, weekly mortality audit, weekly simulations of critically ill children and monthly Departmental meetings.