About Us:

The Comfort Zone for pediatric procedural sedation is an enhanced service of the Department of Anesthesiology and Vermont Children’s Hospital at Fletcher Allen, providing safe procedural sedation for infants and children in a child-friendly, family centered environment.

The Comfort Zone team includes pediatricians, anesthesiologists, pediatric nurse specialists, and child life specialists who work closely with the patent and his or her family to provide the highest degree of comfort with sedation care before, during and following a procedure.

The Comfort Zone is a unique service and is the only coordinated pediatric procedural sedation program available in Vermont.

Easy, Efficient, Caring Coordination
Offering individualized, coordinated care with the safest possible methods, the Comfort Zone at Vermont Children’s Hospital features one convenient point of entry for efficient and caring coordination – from scheduling and admission to care planning and discharge.

A full range of sedation services are available, from strictly distractive services with no other interactions to medicines that can be taken for a procedure to aid in the patient’s comfort, to the use of general anesthetics.

A Child-Friendly, Family-Centered Space
Located adjacent to Post-Procedure Recovery in the West Pavilion of the Ambulatory Care Center, the Comfort Zone is decorated with bright colors and murals, with a wide variety of age-appropriate toys and games for children, televisions in the exam rooms, and a waiting area where children and their families can relax.  The Comfort Zone is adjacent to procedure rooms where most pediatric procedures take place.

There are times when a child may be moved to other areas of the hospital for a specific procedure, such as MRI, CT or endoscopy, but many procedures are able to be performed within the setting of the Comfort Zone.  The unique space allows families to stay together and staff members to escort family members in and out of procedure rooms.  The space also has a circular traffic flow, where children end where they began, allowing patients and their families a familiar and appropriate place to reunite.  Patients and families also encounter the same familiar faces before and after their procedures.

Comfort for Children and Families
Child life specialists and pediatric nurse specialists on staff in the Comfort Zone help ease the anxiety children sometimes feel during medical experiences.  For pediatric patients, that means sharing information to help children and their families understand a diagnosis or medical procedure prior to treatment.  Comfort often comes in the form of therapeutic play, including talking through and practicing some of the things a child will do to understand and cope with a medical experience at Vermont Children’s Hospital.  Preparation can also include medical play with a doll, blowing bubbles to relax, and handling some of the equipment (an IV line, for instance) a patient will see during a procedure.  Part of the child life specialist’s job is also to help patients and their siblings express feelings and emotions prior to and after a procedure.

The Comfort Zone care team includes:

• Pediatricians
• Anesthesiologists
• Pediatric nurse specialists
• Child life specialists
• Parents and families

The Comfort Zone provides procedural sedation for infants and children in need of radiological and other services, including:

• CT scans
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
• Electroencephalograms (EEG)
• Other imaging studies
• Bone marrow procedures
• Lumbar puncture
• Botox injections
• Bronchoscopies
• Endoscopies
• Voiding cystourethrograms (VCUG)

Location:

Medical Center Campus

Ambulatory Care Center

West Pavilion, 3rd Floor

111 Colchester Avenue

Burlington, VT 05401

Contact Information:

(802) 847-ZONE (9663)