PROGRAMS & SERVICES

The Alberta Children's Hospital promotes a philosophy of family centred care and recognizes that often children heal better at home. The hospital has a clinical outpatient area bigger than a football field, on each of five floors, to serve the more than 60 per cent of patients who are treated as outpatients. These patients have an appointment with specialist and health care teams and then return home at the end of their visits.

The health care teams for each patient are able to confer easily and quickly regarding a patient's care. This unique system has been in place at the Alberta Children's Hospital since the 1970's and continues to be modeled world-wide at other centres as a leading edge method of providing outpatient care.

The Alberta Children's Hospital has approximately 133 beds for children who require both short and long term stays in the hospital. In each inpatient room there is accommodation for families to stay overnight, internet access and a window with a view of the river valley, mountains or nearby Nosehill Park.

Each inpatient unit includes a playroom for patients and their sibling to play, read or participate in crafts and games organized by hospital volunteers and child life therapists.  The hospital includes an inpatient movie screening auditorium with a 20 foot by 11 foot movie screen featuring surround sound. The auditorium is accessible to wheelchairs and hospital beds.

The average length of stay for inpatients is five days.