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Wheeling Hospital has hired three pediatric hospitalists for a new service to provide inpatient care of infants and children around the clock.
Dr. Judith Romano, director of the hospital's Center for Pediatrics, said the pediatric hospitalists work in concert with a child's primary care pediatrician.
"The continuity of care is excellent," she said. "There's still that close relationship between the pediatrician and the child and the family."
Drs. Anish Trehun, Brian Vaske and Sandhya Vethachalam are available to provide hospital coverage during nights and on weekends, allowing for uninterrupted care. Romano said the service is offered 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to assist when children's regular pediatricians are unavailable. The primary care pediatrician remains involved throughout a child's hospital stay, but if there is a significant change to the child's condition, the hospitalists are on site to respond.
The other important role of the pediatric hospitalist is to provide consultation in the emergency department day or night, Romano said. In addition, she said, if an emergency delivery occurs, a pediatric hospitalist can examine the newborn immediately, instead of waiting for a primary care pediatrician to arrive.