After your child's surgery

Once your child is transferred to “Phase 2,” we’ll check their vitals and ask about their level of pain. We’ll also look at the surgical site to make sure it looks OK. Once your child is ready, we'll give you instructions for care at home before your child is discharged from the hospital.

If your child is admitted to the hospital after surgery, they will only be in “Phase 1” until a room is ready. Or if your child is being admitted to the ICU, they will go directly from surgery to the intensive care unit.

Depending upon the type of surgery, your child will stay under sedation from a few hours to a few days after surgery. When waking from anesthesia, children are sometimes confused, crying, combative, and scared. This is normal. We do everything we can to keep them as comfortable as possible while they recover from surgery.

Our goal is to provide you and your child the most comfortable and secure environment possible. For that reason, we have very specific visitor guidelines that must be followed. Guidelines may change seasonally depending on community levels of infectious diseases.

• Parents and legal guardians are allowed unlimited visitation.
• Other family members and friends may visit between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.
• Older siblings may be allowed to visit. Check with your child’s care team about current guidelines.
• Young children (siblings or friends) must be supervised.
• Your child may have 2 visitors at a time. Additional visitors must wait in the main lobby.
• Due to HIPAA (Health Information Portability and Accessibility Act) regulations and laws protecting patient privacy, visitor passes must be worn at all times, and you must be with your child when visitors are in the room. Please refrain from standing in the hallways or entering other patients’ rooms.
• Stuffed animals, flowers, and latex balloons are not allowed in patient rooms.
• To maintain a restful and healing environment, visitors are asked to keep noise to a minimum.
• Mobile phones are allowed in designated areas. Please be courteous to others while speaking on your phone.
• Advocate Children’s Hospital is a nonsmoking facility. Any person found smoking on the medical campus will be asked to stop and may be escorted off hospital property.

For the most part, you may visit your child at any time. In the ICU, there are some restrictions, which we’ll go over the day of surgery. You can check with your child’s nurse about siblings visiting.

The pediatric general surgery team will see your child on rounds at least once a day. Feel free to ask questions about your child’s progress during those visits. If you’re not available at these times, please ask your child’s nurse to have one of the physicians call you. We’re always happy to answer any questions you have.

While your child is in ICU, you can’t sleep at their bedside, but you may visit at night. However, one parent can stay the night once your child is out of the ICU. All rooms (except for ICU) are private with sleep chairs and showers for parents who wish to stay overnight. Here are guidelines while your child is in intensive care:

• Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU): Parents are not allowed to stay overnight, but they can visit at night.
• Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU): Both parents are allowed to stay at night at the Park Ridge campus.
• Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU): Only one parent is allowed to stay overnight at the Oak Lawn campus.

Before taking your child home, you’ll receive detailed instructions regarding wound care, medication, and follow-up visits. We encourage you to keep your child out of daycare for a minimum of four weeks following surgery, as they will be more susceptible to infection.

If your child normally goes to school, you’ll be asked to keep them out of school for two to four weeks, depending upon the type of surgery and how their recovery is progressing.

Many times, acetaminophen is given for the pain. If your child is having difficulty with pain even after acetaminophen is given, call the Pediatric General Surgery office (Oak Lawn: 708-684-2016; Park Ridge: 847-318-9330). Our office hours are 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. We are closed on the weekends. Please note we have a 24-hour answering service in case you need to reach a surgeon.