Blythedale Childrens Hospital

The steven and alexandra cohen pediatric long term care pavilion, which opened in fall 2016, is a unique 24-bed facility dedicated to the highly specialized needs of infants and children who require extended medical care and rehabilitation. In 2024, the hospital cared for 26 children and ran an average occupancy of 99.5%. 75% of the children were under the age of 6, 95.8% were reimbursed through the medicaid program and 96% required ventilator-respiratory support. The pavilion serves children with complex medical needs, including those who require a longer period of time to be weaned from the ventilator, and premature infants with feeding difficulties, congenital conditions or neurological disorders. The pavilion is staffed by a full-time pediatrician who works in consultation with a variety of pediatric subspecialists including pediatric pulmonology, pediatric physical medicine and rehabilitation, and pediatric neurology. The comprehensive team also include registered nurses, certified respiratory therapists, physical/occupational/speech therapists, recreational therapists, child psychologists, child life specialists and a dedicated social worker. Features of the pavilion include 11 double-bedded rooms and two private rooms, all with piped-in oxygen, a spacious dining and recreation area, dedicated therapy space, an infant playroom and teen lounge. An attractive courtyard includes play areas, walking paths and sitting areas for residents and their families. Children in the pediatric long term care unit have access to education through the on-site mt. Pleasant-blythedale school and early childhood center, and recreational programming on evenings, weekends and holidays. Family involvement is a key component of care at blythedale, and progress toward goals (established upon admission) will be reviewed during periodic family conferences. An interdisciplinary approach to treatment is a hallmark of blythedale, and each patient's clinical care team will meet every two weeks to discuss the individualized plan from every perspective: medical, social, psychological, and educational.

The day hospital program - blythedale offers a day hospital program for those children who are able to live at home, but still require a level of medical and rehabilitative care that cannot be met by their school or outpatient program. In 2024, blythedale treated 243 children in the program. Roughly 51+ % of the program comes directly from blythedale' s inpatient setting, while the balance come directly from referrals in the community and through the early intervention/cpse programs throughout the region. In 2024, the day hospital served on average of 92 patients per school day for a total of 21,436 visits. Over 84+% of these patients were reimbursed by the medicaid program. The day hospital program provides a nurturing environment where children with various special medical needs can receive daily medical supervision, nursing care, and have their needs for physical, occupational and speech therapies met, all while returning home at the end of the day. Each child's program is individualized to address their unique medical, psychological and therapeutic needs. In addition, every child is assigned a social worker to provide family support and case management. As necessary, ongoing psychosocial support and counseling, and case management are provided. Services for school-age children are provided in conjunction with a full academic program under the auspices of the mount pleasant-blythedale union free school district.the cpse program - committee on preschool special education (cpse program): blythedale children's hospital provides evaluation and treatment services for young children between the ages of 3 to 5 years who are referred through their local committee on preschool special education (cpse). These patients are eligible for assessment at no cost to their families. The new york state education department oversees a statewide preschool special education program with school districts, municipalities, approved providers, and parents. Evaluations and services are provided to eligible children who have a disability that affects their learning. Funding for evaluations and services is provided by municipalities and the state. In 2024, the program served 38 patients for a total of 3,587 visits. Evaluation and treatment planning are performed by a multidisciplinary team that may consist of therapists, special education teachers, audiologists, physiatrists (rehabilitation doctors), neurologists, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, nurses, nutritionists, and other specialty consultants.

In 2024, the hospital provided 4,764 outpatient therapy, teletherapy, and specialty clinic visits to 701 children in the region. Blythedale children's hospital is well suited to provide evaluation and treatment services for young children. As the region's premiere hospital offering rehabilitative services to children, we have the largest departments of speech therapy, occupational therapy and physical therapy. The expertise of our highly skilled, multidisciplinary staff enables us to provide coordinated, comprehensive, individualized programs for the children and families we serve. Parents and staff work closely together to develop goals. Evaluation and treatment planning are performed by a multi-disciplinary team that may consist of therapists, physiatrists (rehabilitation doctors), neurologists, psychiatrists, psychologists, special education, teachers, audiologists, social workers, nurses, nutritionists, and other specialty consultants. While not limited to the following, the program treats a wide array of issues and diagnoses including delays or lags in reaching their developmental milestones, congenital or acquired abnormalities such as vision or hearing impairments, diagnosed medical conditions such as cerebral palsy, neuromuscular or other neurological disordersblythedale is recognized as a leader in the care and case management of medically fragile children under the umbrella of new york state's health home serving children program. Our proactive care coordination model provides members and their families with the support needed to promote more consistent medical care, a reduction in unnecessary hospitalizations, and the achievement of medical and therapeutic goals. The model includes monthly in-home visits with the child and family, 24 hour/7 days a week access to care management support, and coordination of care and services across the medical, behavioral health, educational, and social spectrum. Social determinants of health including access to transportation, food security, and health literacy are also considered by the care manager. We are currently partnered with montefiore health home to provide services in the bronx and with skyward health to provide services in westchester county, 2 of our largest regional catchment areas. Member capacity continues to range from 60-70 members dependent on the acuity of the children served. One of our care managers is bilingual to allow for better service for our spanish-speaking members, but we can work with any language using an interpreter service.health home leadership participates in several committees run by the new york state department of health aimed at continually improving the services offered through the health home serving children program across the state.