Your Child’s Care Team

Whether you’re at the hospital, an emergency department, or a doctor’s office, you’ll meet many different types of healthcare professionals at Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital at NYU Langone. We realize it’s important for you as a parent to know who is caring for your child and what their responsibilities are.

Here are the clinicians and staff who provide care to children at Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital.

Doctors on Your Child’s Team

• An attending physician is the doctor who supervises your child’s treatment and care, and is the most senior and experienced doctor on your child’s medical team.
• A hospitalist is an attending physician who specializes in the care of hospitalized children.
• A consulting physician is an attending physician who specializes in a certain area of medicine or surgery, and who may be asked to join the team of doctors providing care for your child based on his or her specialty.
• A fellow is a doctor who has completed training in pediatrics and is specializing in one area of medical care.
• A resident, intern, or house staff is a doctor who is in training to be a pediatrician.
• A medical student is in medical school and is training to become a doctor.

Nurses on Your Child’s Team

• A registered nurse is a licensed professional who provides nursing care for your child.
• A nurse practitioner (NP) is a registered nurse who has advanced training and education and works with the doctor to care for your child.
• A nurse manager and assistant nurse manager are registered nurses who provide leadership for an inpatient unit or clinical area.
• A charge nurse is a registered nurse who is responsible for the daily management of a hospital inpatient unit.
• A care manager is a registered nurse who works with a social worker and your family to make sure your child is ready to go home from the hospital. He or she connects you with support programs in your community and makes sure your insurance provider receives all of the information needed to authorize coverage of your child’s care.

Sala Child and Family Support Services and Resilience Programs

Our child and family support services team delivers care that is rooted in the philosophy of Sala Institute for Child and Family Centered Care, which promotes the health and wellbeing of the entire family.

• An art therapist uses different forms of art to promote healing and to help children communicate thoughts and feelings.
• A chaplain focuses on the emotional and spiritual wellbeing of your child and family. He or she can provide comfort and a listening ear, and help you and your child find meaning, hope, and connection.
• A child life specialist provides emotional support for children and families, and offers ways to cope through therapeutic play. He or she also offers age-appropriate medical preparation and education.
• A child life assistant provides age-appropriate play and arts and crafts activities for children in playrooms and at their bedsides.
• A dietitian or nutritionist provides expertise in infant and child nutrition. He or she works with the care team to ensure plans are in place to support healing.
• A family consultant is a parent liaison who recruits and leads members of the Sala Family Advisory Council, hosts Family to Family programs, and represents the parent perspective on hospital committees.
• A horticulture therapist provides healing, nature-based activities that support physical and emotional wellbeing.
• An integrative medicine practitioner uses yoga, Reiki, massage, aromatherapy, and other approaches to help manage symptoms for children and provide stress relief for patients and families.
• A music therapist uses music and musical elements to promote mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health.
• A neuropsychologist provides assessment and treatment for children with developmental or cognitive issues, such as medical conditions that affect memory, language, and attention.
• Psychologists and psychiatrists are behavioral health experts who can help your child and family cope with illness, anxiety, and emotional pain.
• A hospital school teacher works with your child’s teacher to provide tutoring and education while your child is in the hospital.
• A social worker talks with children and their families about the social, emotional, and financial issues that come up when a family member has a medical condition. They can connect children and their families to community resources and assist in discharge planning.

Other Important Members of the Team

Your child’s healthcare team may include others who provide additional therapies and supportive services for you and your child.

• An interpreter translates information for children and families who prefer information in a language other than English.
• An occupational therapist helps your child improve or regain the ability to carry out tasks of daily life, including dressing, bathing, using the toilet, and getting around at home. Occupational therapists also use play-based activities to improve memory and social and cognitive skills.
• A patient care technician performs basic care for patients. He or she can take your child’s vital signs, help him or her use the restroom, change bedding, or assist in other ways.
• A Patient Relations representative helps with any concerns you may have about your child’s hospital stay.
• A patient unit associate works at the unit desk and provides administrative support.
• A physical therapist works with your child on movements of the whole body, such as getting out of bed, standing up, sitting down, walking, and climbing stairs. He or she also helps improve your child’s balance, strength, and flexibility.
• A physician assistant (PA) is a medical professional with advanced training who works with a doctor to care for your child.
• A respiratory therapist provides care for children with lung or heart conditions and others who have trouble breathing.
• A speech–language pathologist helps improve or restore your child’s ability to speak, understand, and express needs. He or she also helps with sucking, chewing, and swallowing.