The Spinal Cord Program
About the Program
The Spinal Cord Rehabilitation Program at Children’s Specialized Hospital provides intensive and comprehensive rehabilitation services for infants, children, and adolescents with acquired, traumatic, and congenital spinal cord dysfunction. The program, approved by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, treats patients with all levels of pediatric spinal cord dysfunction, from the child dependent on a ventilator to the individual with the mildest impairment.
Patients are treated with an aggressive rehabilitation program, coupled with comprehensive medical and nursing care. Because of this team approach, a coordinated treatment plan can be designed to meet the complex needs of each patient and his or her family.
The team is adept at developing treatment plans with realistic expectations to accommodate patients with lower-level spinal cord injuries (paraplegia) as well as those with cervical spinal cord injuries (tetraplegia/quadriplegia) who need medical support, special equipment and ventilator assistance.
Patients who need special medical care can be safely accommodated with Children’s Specialized Hospital’s extensive medical coverage. Patients with tracheostomies, special feeding needs, and intravenous and central lines, for example, can be managed while receiving rehabilitation therapy.
Patients and their families are an essential part of the rehabilitation team. We strongly encourage family participation in treatment sessions, goal setting, and discharge planning. Our team instructs families in caring for their children and using special equipment. The team educates patients and families about the impact a spinal cord injury or dysfunction will have on their lives.
Our Medical Specialties
A pediatric physiatrist, a physician who specializes in physical medicine and rehabilitation, heads the Spinal Rehabilitation Program team. Other medical specialists in the following disciplines are also available for consultation:
- Neurology
- Orthopedics
- Pediatrics
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- Psychiatry
- Radiology
- Urology
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House staff in pediatrics and physiatry provide 24-hour in-house physician coverage under the attending physician’s supervision.
For information on our Outpatient Programs,
click here
Professional Affiliations:
www.childlife.org
www.nctrc.org
www.atra-online.com
Further Information:
For more information about the Recreational Therapy/Child Life Department, please
call Children's Specialized Hospital in New Brunswick at 1-888-CHILDREN (244-5373),
Ext. 7129; in Mountainside at 1-888-CHILDREN (244-5373), Ext. 5362; and in Toms
River at 1-888-CHILDREN (244-5373), Ext. 3716.
