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Castle Mey Ward

· Nov 30, 2021 ·

Castle Mey Ward is on the ground floor of the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People. Also known as the ‘paediatric acute receiving unit’ or PARU, Castle Mey Ward can be a very busy place and is where children and young people are admitted, usually for up to 48 hours. After this time, most children will be well enough to go home, but sometimes a longer stay is needed and this might be on a different, more specialist ward.

Phone Number: 0131 3120090
Nurses in charge: Lorayne Duthie & Mark Martin

What can you expect at Castle Mey?

The ward can be a very busy place, with babies, children and young people being admitted at night as well as during the day, usually because they have come to the Emergency Department but are not well enough to be discharged back home. Each child will be given a named nurse in charge of their care who can explain what will happen during their stay. Nurses work in 12-hour shifts, with a handover taking place twice each day between the ‘day shift’ and ‘night shift’, usually around 7.30 am and 7.30 pm. It is normal to see a few different nurses, student nurses, nurse practitioners, doctors, consultants and other specialists during your time on the ward. Everyone will be working together to plan the best care for each child, depending on the treatment that they need.

There are ‘Welcome to Hospital’ booklets for children, available from the reception desk or the play specialists. They have puzzles, pages to colour in and space to keep track of who has been to see you on the ward or any tests and treatment. Please ask for a copy if you’d like one.

Paediatric Psychology & Liaison Service (PPALS)

· Nov 15, 2021 ·

The Paediatric Psychology and Liaison Service (PPALS) is a specialist team that includes clinical psychologists, psychological practitioners, neuropsychologists, psychiatrists, creative arts therapists and a nurse therapist, all of whom are specially-trained to work with children and young people. We use psychological approaches to promote health, wellbeing and development.

Trainees and assistant psychologists also work within the team under supervision. We are part of the NHS Lothian Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) and receive support from Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity (ECHC) and It’s Good 2 Give.

Who do we work with?

We work with children and young people who:

Are under the care of a consultant at the RHCYP
And have a physical health condition
And are experiencing psychological or behavioural issues related to their physical health condition
And the difficulties impact significantly on their day-to-day life.

What do we do?

We think it is important to look at the whole person and things that may be affecting your health and wellbeing. Research shows that:

Children with physical health problems are sometimes more at risk of developing mental health difficulties.
Psychological approaches can improve how you cope and your quality of life.

We will try to help you and other people around you to:

Understand the physical health condition,
Think about how this makes you and other people feel,
Look at ways of coping with different symptoms, emotions, thoughts and behaviour
Explore things that would help your overall wellbeing.

We also work closely with medical teams, schools and other professionals, and we meet regularly with different teams in the hospital.

Art & Play Therapy

For some children and young people, having a space to reflect on their thoughts and feelings can be more helpful than talking about them. This may mean exploring their experiences through drawing, painting, sculpture, or sensory activities such as making potions and playing. Sometimes it might be helpful to meet with an Art or Play Therapist, who can support children and young people to work towards a goal and help them cope with difficulties such as low mood, anxiety, procedural anxiety and more. Your medical team might discuss this with you and, if you agree, they can make a referral to us.

Surgery

· Oct 25, 2021 ·

Our surgeons see babies, children and young people with a wide range of different conditions. Families come to us from all across Scotland and sometimes from other parts of the UK too. Caring for children before, during and after their operations involves a team of specially-trained surgeons, anaesthetists, doctors, nurses, radiology professionals, rehab specialists, therapists and many other experts in children’s health to plan the best care possible for each young patient.

The RHCYP in Edinburgh has purpose-built operating theatres for children and young adults up to around the age of 16, including specialist equipment such as a state-of-the-art intraoperative MRI scanner that allows scan pictures to be taken and seen during an operation.

Anaesthetic Department

· Sep 3, 2021 ·

Welcome to the anaesthetic department at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in Edinburgh. We also have colleagues working at St. John’s Hospital in Livingston looking after babies, children and young people on the children’s ward there.

Anaesthetists (sometimes known as ‘sleepy doctors’) look after any child who needs to come to hospital for a procedure, scan or treatment needing sedation or a general anaesthetic. We are a department of consultants, trainees, specialist nurses and play specialists caring for children before, during and after their procedure.

On this page you can find out what we do, who we are and how you can feel more prepared for your visit to the hospital.

Trauma Service

· Aug 27, 2021 ·

Major Trauma is a serious injury or a group of injuries which might be life-threatening and can sometimes cause changes to a person’s life, such as how they get around or how they might look. Scotland has a network of major trauma centres and the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People is one of them. This means that children and young people can be given the right care, in the right place, at the right time. This can save lives, prevent complications, speed up recovery and help children return to an active life.

What we do

The Major Trauma team at the RHCYP cares for children and young people who have had accidents that affect lots of different parts of their bodies. These patients might stay in a few different wards during their stay. They will have treatment from many different specialists including those working with broken bones, injuries to the head and spine, and skin injuries. Some children and young people might need operations and often start their stay in Critical Care. We see patients from across Scotland, including patients that have had an injury while on holiday.

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What can you expect at Castle Mey?

Who do we work with?

What do we do?

Art & Play Therapy

What we do

More Information

Contact NHS Lothian