Staff members in the Division of Pediatric General Surgery provide care for children with a variety of conditions, including congenital anomalies, childhood tumors, trauma, and burns.
The oldest of the surgical divisions at Children's Memorial Hospital, pediatric general surgery was founded and directed by the hospital's first full-time surgeon-in-chief, Dr. Willis Potts. Giving rise to many of the other pediatric surgery sub-specialty areas that now exist, the division is not defined by a single organ system or a single group of diagnoses. Instead, pediatric surgeons use their wide-ranging skills to treat conditions of childhood that require surgery on the head and neck, the chest, abdomen, and extremities.
In addition to their expertise in general pediatric surgery, members of the division oversee the following special programs:
In addition to clinical care, pediatric general surgery has been highly involved over the years in pediatric surgical research and education. In fact, Children's Memorial boasts the second oldest pediatric surgery training program in the United States.
The division's staff
Trained as general surgeons, with two extra years of training in pediatric surgery, the division's highly experienced, full-time attending physicians perform thousands of procedures annually. The staff also includes fellows in pediatric general surgery and fellows in pediatric surgery/critical care. (Fellows are general surgeons who are getting the additional years of training in their subspecialty area.)
The team also includes an experienced clinical nurse specialist, Teri Crawley-Coha, RN, MSN, WOCN. She practices alongside the surgeons at the main hospital in Chicago and is especially interested in the care of children with gastrotomy tubes, those who need help with bowel management, cecostomy care, ostomies in general and in wound care. She is a valuable resource to parents who need extra care and guidance in the care of their children related to surgery.
Consultations
In-person consultations on any possible surgical condition are a hallmark of the division's strong commitment to excellent patient care. Not only does this meeting allow the surgeon to make an assessment of the patient's clinical needs, it also creates the foundation for trust between anxious parents and the person who will ultimately perform their child's surgery.
In addition to meeting with families and children who need surgery immediately, pediatric surgeons at Children's Memorial frequently provide prenatal consultations to expectant parents. These occur after an ultrasound reveals a congenital anomaly that may require surgery after birth. A thorough discussion of surgical options prior to the time surgery is required is often essential. Besides the procedure, surgeons and families discuss where the birth should occur — if surgery will be required immediately following — and what method of delivery is best for mother and child. This is particularly important when there is any concern or a congenital anomaly or a neonatal tumor.