Drs. Corinne Catarozoli, Cori Green, and Stephen Oh receive $100k gift from the Chaus family to support the expansion of Pediatrics Psychology to WCM Pediatric Surgical Service. The expansion would allow patients undergoing surgery access to mental health care concurrently with their medical treatment. Families will be able to meet with a psychologist pre-operatively for support with preparing their child for surgery, managing anticipatory anxiety, addressing potential behavioral concerns, and screen for any psychosocial concerns. Parents experience significant stress and worry in advance of their child’s surgery, both about the procedure itself as well as their child’s future with a medical diagnosis. Parent guidance on how to speak to their child about the procedure, age-appropriate language to use, and tailoring discussions to specific medical conditions will be offered. Children and adolescents will pre-emptively learn coping techniques to use to support coping with the stress of surgery. During the surgical admission, a psychologist will also meet with the family to support concerns that arise at the time of the inpatient stay (i.e., adjusting to the hospital, coping with pain, sleep difficulties). Bedside psychology visits on the unit to both children and parents is an integral part of this service to provide direct and timely mental health care. Post-operatively, families will be offered follow-up outpatient psychology sessions to address post-discharge concerns, such as recovery at home, school re-entry, and long-term adjustment.
Research shows that psychological intervention during the surgical process reduces anxiety in both children and parents and results in more optimal post-operative behavioral adjustment among children. In addition to improved psychiatric sequalae, psychological support has also been shown to be associated with better medical outcomes. Mental health support across the pediatric surgical continuum of care will provide comprehensive treatment to ease the emotional burden during a very stressful time for children and families.