Community Paediatrics and Child Health - Fairfield Hospital [Bury]

Bury community paediatric medical team provides consultant lead services for children registered with Bury GPs. The entire medical team is based at Fairfield General Hospital (FGH).

The medical team undertakes clinics in a variety of settings e.g. in paediatric outpatient clinics, Child Development Centre, Paediatric Audiology suite –all situated in FGH. The team also undertakes clinics in Bury’s special schools, community clinics in Prestwich, Tottington, Radcliffe or Bury Living Well Centre.

The medical team works closely with all levels of hospital and community based children’s nursing staff, children’s Allied Health Professionals (AHPS), Paediatric Audiology Staff, Bury Public Health department, Bury Education department including teachers, SEND-CO, SEND-Team and Bury’s Social Care service (Children’s Disability Team, Adoption and Fostering Team and children’s safeguarding hub). The medical team also works closely with voluntary agencies e.g. Bury2gether.  The medical team consists of consultants, associate specialists and junior and senior Trainees in Community paediatrics.

The department at Fairfield is a training centre for future consultant paediatricians in the speciality of community paediatrics. The centre is also responsible for hosting doctor’s speciality national examination under the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, UK. The centre also receives undergraduate medical students.  

Broadly speaking, Bury community paediatric medical team are involved in provision of following services for children 0 to 16 years (up to 19 years if the young person is in special school):

A) Neurodisability service including Children’s sleep service and Botulinum Toxin injection service for spasticity management. Examples are assessments of social communication difficulties, ADHD, neurological problems leading to complex needs, Cerebral Palsy, Developmental Delay etc

B) Paediatric Audiological Medicine service

C) Adoption, Fostering, Children and Young people in Care (CYPIC, formerly Looked After Children) service

D) Provision of medical input for children with Special Educational Needs (SEND) –service

E) Sudden Unexpected Death in Children –service (SUD-C)

F) Participation in Section 47 (Children Act) medical examination when requested by Social Care

H) Miscellaneous -wide range of associated services e.g.  Joint specialist visiting paediatric neurology clinics (specialist paediatric neurologist from Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital provides a clinic at Fairfield Hospital for Bury’s children), some public health activities, ad-hoc pilot projects e.g. Transition of young people with complex needs to adulthood  

Patients/parents should receive an appointment letter. All children are seen in Children’s outpatient clinic for the initial assessment by Consultant or a deputy. If a child requires multidisciplinary assessment, he/she will be referred to Child Development centre. If appropriate a child may be referred for further investigations to nurse led weight and height clinic, Qb testing clinics, Sleep clinics and phlebotomy clinics or for X-rays /scans if appropriate.

Children referred for specialist led “hearing testing clinic “are seen at the Paediatric Audiology suite situated at the Kenyon suite within General outpatient department. However, investigations for some of the hearing impaired children are carried out via the Aetiology Clinic at the Children’s Out Patient department. The appointment letter should specify this.

Patients must be registered with a Bury GP. Referrals can be made by GP, Health Visitors, School Nurses, Children’s Community nurses, Allied Health Professionals, other Consultants of Northern Care Alliance and Manchester Children’s Hospital (if patient is registered with Bury GP), Portage worker and Bury Social care.

All referrals are checked by one of the member of medical team and inappropriate referrals are rejected with advice or re-directed to more appropriate service.

Patient leaflets are usually provided after initial attendance according to pathways the children are placed for further assessments.

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