U.S. Rep. Pete Aguilar, California 31st district, visited Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital for a tour Aug. 27. The former Redlands mayor, elected to Congress in 2014, was guided through the hospital by various physicians who highlighted the types of care provided by Children’s Hospital — the only dedicated pediatric hospital in the Inland Empire.
“This was an opportunity for our district representative to see the specialized services we provide to the children in the region,” says Richard Chinnock, MD, physician-in-chief of Children’s Hospital, who also hosted the tour. “Rep. Aguilar is very committed to our kids and assuring the success of health care.”
Douglas Deming, MD, chair of neonatology, walked Aguilar through the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), which is the largest and only level-three designated NICU in the Inland Empire region. The 84-bed unit treats the most critically ill infants and is equipped to provide the highest level of care for the most complex disorders. The unit also includes the neuro NICU, providing specialized services to neurologically impaired babies or those at high risk for neurologic impairment.
Aguilar also toured the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), led by Shamel Abd-Allah, MD, chief of pediatric critical care. The PICU is a 25-bed tertiary care unit dedicated exclusively to the specialized medical and surgical needs of critically ill children from birth through adolescence. The PICU at Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital has been serving patients from across the four-county Inland Empire region for over 25 years.
Infant heart transplantation pioneer and surgeon-in-chief at Children’s Hospital Leonard Bailey, MD, gave Aguilar an overview of the pediatric cardiac care unit, which was recently named after Bailey. The pediatric cardiac care team specializes in heart valve repairs, repairing severe congenital defects. In addition to the tour, Bailey presented Aguilar with a personalized white coat and surgical tools.
Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital remains at the forefront of research, education, technology and cutting-edge surgical techniques.