East Tennessee Children's Hospital is a private, independent, not-for-profit, 152-bed pediatric medical center in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in Knox County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the Tennessee River and had a population of 190,740 at the 2020 United States census. It is the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division ...

. The hospital's primary service area includes 16 counties in East Tennessee, and its secondary service area includes counties in southwest Virginia, southeast Kentucky and western North Carolina. It is certified by the state as a Comprehensive Regional Pediatric Center (CRPC), Tennessee's highest level of certification for pediatric hospital care. The hospital is accredited by the

Joint Commission The Joint Commission is a United States-based nonprofit tax-exempt 501(c) organization that accredits more than 22,000 US health care organizations and programs. The international branch accredits medical services from around the world. A majori ...

for the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and is a member of Child Health Corporation of America, Hospital Alliance of Tennessee, Children's Hospital Alliance of Tennessee, Tennessee Hospital Association and National Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions (

NACHRI The Children's Hospital Association (CHA), is an organization of children's hospitals with more than 200 members in the United States, Australia, Canada, Italy, Mexico and Puerto Rico. CHA has offices located in Lenexa, Kansas and Washington, D ...

). The hospital and its affiliates, including numerous pediatric physician practices, employ about 1,800 individuals in full-time, part-time and as-needed positions.

History

Opening in 1937, the 28-bed facility at 1912 Laurel Avenue was known as the Knox County Crippled Children's Hospital, and its primary purpose was to care for children with

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

. In the 1940s, because of admissions from outside Knox County, officials changed the name of the hospital to East Tennessee Crippled Children's Hospital, open to children birth through 21 years with any type of illness. Because of the advent of

antibiotics An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting pathogenic bacteria, bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the therapy ...

and the

polio vaccine Polio vaccines are vaccines used to prevent poliomyelitis (polio). Two types are used: an inactivated vaccine, inactivated poliovirus given by injection (IPV) and a attenuated vaccine, weakened poliovirus given by mouth (OPV). The World Healt ...

, the need for specialized orthopedic services diminished. Because of this, the hospital was officially renamed East Tennessee Children's Hospital in 1955 and began to focus on all pediatric

illnesses A disease is a particular abnormal condition that adversely affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism and is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that are asso ...

and

injuries Injury is physiological damage to the living tissue of any organism, whether in humans, in other animals, or in plants. Injuries can be caused in many ways, including mechanically with penetration by sharp objects such as teeth or with b ...

. In 1970, a new facility with 74 beds opened at the hospital's current location, 2018 Clinch Avenue, a few blocks from the original location. In 1975, the number of beds increased from 74 to 96 with the completion of a 22-bed fourth floor. Later in 1975, the addition of an Intensive Care Nursery increased total beds at East Tennessee Children's Hospital to 122. A emergency department was completed in 1981, and a five-story medical office building was added in 1986. Additional facility expansions—without a change in total patient beds—took place in 1988, 1993, 1994 and 2001. The hospital constructed two parking garages, the first in 1993 (now used for patient and physician parking) and the second in 2001 (for employee parking). In 1999, a new three-story hospital office building, Children's Plaza, opened. It was renamed in 2001 to honor longtime hospital president Bob Koppel on the 25th anniversary of his presidency. This building was expanded in 2003, more than doubling in size. In 2001 Children's Hospital received state approval to begin development of Children's West, an outpatient campus in West Knoxville. The campus now is home to the Children's West Surgery Center (a day surgery center that opened in 2003) and Children's Hospital Rehabilitation Center, which relocated from its former site in 2004. Also in 2001 Children's Hospital announced plans for a major expansion and renovation project on the main campus. The project included a new seven-story patient tower, a third-floor addition over the existing Emergency Department and renovation of much of the existing facility, including renovation of all semi-private patient rooms into private rooms with full baths. Children's Hospital's $31.8 million expansion project was completed in 2005. When the project began, Children's Hospital was a 169,700-square-foot, 122-bed facility; the hospital now has of space and 152 licensed beds. In January 2004, Children's Hospital provided care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit for Tennessee's first surviving quintuplets, the van Tols: Willem Scott, Sean Conner, Isabella Marie, Ashley Faith and Meghan Ann. In 2006, the hospital provided surgical care to two Iraqi girls brought to the United States for treatment of serious medical conditions.

Services

East Tennessee Children's Hospital offers 29 subspecialties (with more than 90 pediatric subspecialists). Children made more than 155,000 visits to Children's Hospital in the 2007-08

fiscal year A fiscal year (also known as a financial year, or sometimes budget year) is used in government accounting, which varies between countries, and for budget purposes. It is also used for financial reporting by businesses and other organizations. La ...

, which ended June 30, 2008. Children's Hospital provides the following services: * Treatment for acute illnesses and injuries in the 24-hour

Emergency Department An emergency department (ED), also known as an accident and emergency department (A&E), emergency room (ER), emergency ward (EW) or casualty department, is a medical treatment facility specializing in emergency medicine, the Acute (medicine), ...

. * Care for

critically ill Intensive care medicine, usually called critical care medicine, is a medical specialty that deals with seriously or critically ill patients who have, are at risk of, or are recovering from conditions that may be life-threatening. It includes p ...

and injured patients in the Goody's

Pediatric Intensive Care Unit A pediatric intensive care unit (also paediatric), usually abbreviated to PICU (), is an area within a hospital specializing in the care of critically ill infants, children, teenagers, and young adults aged 0–21. A PICU is typically directed by ...

(PICU), . *

Board-certified Board certification is the process by which a physician, veterinarian, or other professional demonstrates a mastery of advanced knowledge and skills through written, oral, practical, or simulator-based testing. Certification bodies There are mor ...

neonatologist Neonatology is a subspecialty of pediatrics that consists of the medical care of newborn infants, especially the ill or premature newborn. It is a hospital-based specialty and is usually practised in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). The ...

s in the 44-bed Haslam Family

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit A neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), also known as an intensive care nursery (ICN), is an intensive care unit (ICU) specializing in the care of ill or premature newborn infants. The NICU is divided into several areas, including a critical c ...

(NICU), which specializes in the care of critically ill or

premature Premature may refer to: * ''Premature'' (2014 film), an American comedy film * ''Premature'' (2019 film), an American romantic drama film * '' PREMature'', a 2015 British television drama miniseries See also * Premature aging, of an organism * ...

newborns. * A

pediatric Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many of their youth ...

transport Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

service for critically ill and injured newborns and pediatric patients. As a regional referral center for East Tennessee, Children's Hospital transports children from outlying hospitals in LIFELINE, a mobile intensive care unit. * Diagnostic services including: Clinical Lab, G astroenterology,

Neurology Neurology (from , "string, nerve" and the suffix wikt:-logia, -logia, "study of") is the branch of specialty (medicine) , medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the nervous syst ...

, Pulmonary Function,

Radiology Radiology ( ) is the medical specialty that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide treatment within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiation), but tod ...

Ultrasound Ultrasound is sound with frequency, frequencies greater than 20 Hertz, kilohertz. This frequency is the approximate upper audible hearing range, limit of human hearing in healthy young adults. The physical principles of acoustic waves apply ...

MRI Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to generate pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes inside the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and rad ...

and

CT Scan A computed tomography scan (CT scan), formerly called computed axial tomography scan (CAT scan), is a medical imaging technique used to obtain detailed internal images of the body. The personnel that perform CT scans are called radiographers or ...

. * Outpatient clinics for:

cystic fibrosis Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disorder inherited in an autosomal recessive manner that impairs the normal clearance of Sputum, mucus from the lungs, which facilitates the colonization and infection of the lungs by bacteria, notably ''Staphy ...

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

blood diseases :''This is an incomplete list, which may never be able to satisfy certain standards for completion.'' There are many conditions of or affecting the human hematologic system—the biological system that includes plasma, platelets, leukocytes, an ...

arthritis Arthritis is a general medical term used to describe a disorder that affects joints. Symptoms generally include joint pain and stiffness. Other symptoms may include redness, warmth, Joint effusion, swelling, and decreased range of motion of ...

infectious diseases infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...

Weight Management Weight management comprises behaviors, techniques, and Physiology, physiological processes that contribute to a person's ability to attain and maintain a healthy Human body weight, weight. Most weight management techniques encompass long-term li ...

and

metabolic diseases A metabolic disorder is a disorder that negatively alters the body's processing and distribution of macronutrients, such as proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. Metabolic disorders can happen when abnormal chemical reactions in the body alter the ...

. * Additional services including Children's Hospital Rehabilitation Center (including an indoor therapy pool and a medical day treatment program),

Home Health Care Homecare (home care, in-home care, care at home), also known as domiciliary care, personal care, community care, or social care, is health care or supportive care provided in the individual home where the patient or client is living, generally focu ...

Department, Child Life,

Pastoral Care ''The Book of Pastoral Rule'' (Latin: ''Liber Regulae Pastoralis'', ''Regula Pastoralis'' or ''Cura Pastoralis'' — sometimes translated into English ''Pastoral Care'') is a treatise on the responsibilities of the clergy written by Pope Greg ...

Social Work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

and Interpretation/

Translation Translation is the communication of the semantics, meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The English la ...

Services. ;Pediatric subspecialties: * Adolescent gynecology *

Adolescent medicine Adolescent medicine, also known as adolescent and young adult medicine, is a medical subspecialty that focuses on care of patients who are in the adolescent period of development. This period begins at puberty and lasts until growth has stopped, ...

Neonatology Neonatology is a subspecialty of pediatrics that consists of the medical care of newborn infants, especially the ill or premature newborn. It is a hospital-based specialty and is usually practised in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Th ...

* Pediatric allergy & immunology *

Pediatric anesthesiology Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many of their youth ...

* Pediatric cardiology * Pediatric critical care * Pediatric dentistry/pedodontics * Pediatric dermatology *

Pediatric emergency medicine Pediatric emergency medicine (PEM) is a medical subspecialty of both pediatrics and emergency medicine. It involves the care of undifferentiated, unscheduled children with acute illnesses or injuries that require immediate medical attention. While ...

Pediatric endocrinology Pediatric endocrinology (British: Paediatric) is a medical subspecialty dealing with disorders of the endocrine glands, such as variations of physical growth and sexual development in childhood, diabetes and many more. By age, pediatric endocrino ...

* Pediatric gastroenterology * Pediatric Hematology and Oncology * Pediatric infectious disease * Pediatric nephrology *

Pediatric neurology Pediatric neurology is the medical subfield of neurology focused on the diagnosis, treatment, and management of pathologies related to the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system in children. While pediatric neurologists have many ...

Pediatric neurosurgery Pediatric Neurosurgery is a subspecialty of neurosurgery; which includes surgical procedures that are related to the nervous system, brain and spinal cord; that treats children with operable neurological disorders. __TOC__ History Boston Chil ...

Pediatric ophthalmology Pediatric ophthalmology is a sub-specialty of ophthalmology concerned with eye diseases, visual development, and vision care in children. Training In the United States, pediatric ophthalmologists are physicians who have completed medical school, ...

* Pediatric orthopedics * Pediatric otolaryngology * Pediatric physiatry * Pediatric plastic/reconstructive surgery *Pediatric psychology *

Pediatric pulmonology ''Pediatric Pulmonology'' is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering pediatric pulmonology. It was established in 1985; the editor-in-chief is Susanna McColley, MD. According to the ''Journal Citation Reports'', the journal has a 2020 im ...

* Pediatric radiology *

Pediatric surgery Pediatric surgery is a subspecialty of surgery involving the surgery of fetuses, infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. History Pediatric surgery arose in the middle of the 1879 century as the surgical care of birth defects required ...

Pediatric urology Pediatric urology is a surgical subspecialty of medicine dealing with the disorders of children's genitourinary systems. Pediatric urologists provide care for both boys and girls ranging from birth to early adult age. The most common problems are ...

* Perinatology *

Rheumatology Rheumatology () is a branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis and management of disorders whose common feature is inflammation in the bones, muscles, joints, and internal organs. Rheumatology covers more than 100 different complex diseases, c ...

Community involvement

Knox County School System

Children's Hospital participates in the Knox County School System's Partners in Education program. The hospital's "adopted" schools are Karns Elementary School, Cedar Bluff Intermediate School and Fort Sanders Educational Development Center. The Child Life Department at Children's Hospital and volunteers provide the "Hello Hospital" program to kindergarten classes in all Knox County elementary schools. "Hello Hospital" is designed to teach young children what it is like to visit a hospital.

Community organization involvement

In the fall of 2008, Children's Hospital launched the community-wide Knoxville Area Coalition on Childhood Obesity to increase awareness of problems of childhood obesity, begin a community assessment of current initiatives and introduce the concept of a community coalition using the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...

's We Can! (Ways to Enhance Children's Activity and Nutrition) program. In the summer of 2008, Children's Hospital became the lead organization for Safe Kids of the Greater Knox Area. The mission of the local Safe Kids coalition is to reduce unintentional injuries in children up to age 14 in the East Tennessee region by promoting awareness and implementing prevention initiatives. The local Safe Kids is part of

Safe Kids USA Safe Kids Worldwide (formerly Safe Kids USA) is a global non-profit organization working to prevent childhood injury through research, community outreach, legislative advocacy and media awareness campaigns. Safe Kids Worldwide has over 400 coali ...

, the United States division of Safe Kids Worldwide. Children's Hospital provides staff, volunteers, in-kind services (such as meeting space) and/or financial support to many community organizations whose goals are to improve the lives of children, including

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. The ACS publishes the journals ''Cancer'', '' CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians'' and '' Cancer Cytopathology''. History The society w ...

American Heart Association The American Heart Association (AHA) is a nonprofit organization in the United States that funds cardiovascular medical research, educates consumers on healthy living and fosters appropriate Heart, cardiac care in an effort to reduce disability ...

, CoverKids, CureFinders,

Cystic Fibrosis Foundation The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in the United States established to provide the means to cure cystic fibrosis (CF) and ensure that those living with CF live long and productive lives. The Foundation pro ...

, Down Syndrome Awareness Group, Dream Connection,

Girls on the Run Girls on the Run (also referred to as Girls on the Run International), a national non-profit organization, designs programming that strengthens third- to eighth grade girls’ social, emotional, physical and behavioral skills to successfully navi ...

Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Breakthrough T1D (formerly JDRF) is a type 1 diabetes (T1D) research and advocacy organization. Breakthrough T1D funds research for the development of new therapies and treatments for type 1 diabetes. The organization advocates for federal resear ...

, Knox County Health Department,

Knox County Schools Knox County Schools is the school district that operates all public schools in Knox County, Tennessee. History Before the 1987–1988 school year, the city of Knoxville and Knox County operated separate school districts. In that year the tw ...

' Partners in Education, Knoxville Area Pregnancy Prevention Initiative,

Knoxville Police Department The Knoxville Police Department is the law enforcement agency of the City of Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. History Knoxville was settled in the late 18th century, but law enforcement and criminal justice were handled by Knox County in ...

's Safety City, Knoxville Police Department's Think Fast Alcohol Awareness Program,

Leukemia and Lymphoma Society The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), a 501(c)(3) charitable organization founded in 1949, is a voluntary health organization dedicated to fighting blood cancer world-wide. LLS funds blood cancer research on cures for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin ...

March of Dimes March of Dimes is a United States nonprofit organization that works to improve the health of mothers and babies. The organization was founded by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938, as the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis, to co ...

, Montgomery Village, Smoke-Free Knoxville, TENNder Care Coalition and

United Way United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit organization, nonprofit fundraising affiliates. Prior to 2015, United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public. Individual Un ...

Health care education

Children's Hospital offers student

internships An internship is a period of work experience offered by an organization for a limited period of time. Once confined to medical graduates, internship is used to practice for a wide range of placements in businesses, non-profit organizations and g ...

externships Externships are experiential learning opportunities, similar to internships, provided by partnerships between educational institutions and employers to give students practical experiences in their field of study. In medicine, it may refer to a visi ...

, nursing

scholarships A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need, research ...

and training programs for student nurses, pre-med students,

social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

students, child development specialists and others pursuing

health care Health care, or healthcare, is the improvement or maintenance of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wikt:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physic ...

as a career. Children's Hospital works with the

University of Tennessee Medical Center The University of Tennessee Medical Center (UTMC) is an academic medical center located in Knoxville, Tennessee and serves as a referral center for East Tennessee and regions in Kentucky and North Carolina. The University of Tennessee Graduate S ...

and

University of Tennessee College of Medicine The University of Tennessee College of Medicine is one of six graduate schools of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) in downtown Memphis. The oldest public medical school in Tennessee, the UT College of Medicine is a LCM ...

to provide medical school rotations in

family practice Family medicine is a medical specialty that provides continuing and comprehensive health care for the individual and family across all ages, genders, diseases, and parts of the body. The specialist, who is usually a primary care physician, is ...

and other specialties. The hospital also is the pediatric clinical training site for student nurses,

respiratory therapists A respiratory therapist is a specialized healthcare professional, healthcare practitioner trained in Intensive care medicine, critical care and cardio-pulmonary medicine in order to work therapeutically with people who have acute critical condit ...

radiology Radiology ( ) is the medical specialty that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide treatment within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiation), but tod ...

students and students in other health care disciplines. Children's Hospital is an

accredited Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

Continuing Medical Education Continuing medical education (CME) is continuing education (CE) that helps those in the medical field maintain competence and learn about new and developing areas of their field. These activities may take place as live events, written publications ...

provider in Tennessee. Children's Hospital sponsors the Healthy Kids Community Education Program to provide classes for non-health care professionals. Programs include the

's CPR Certification Program and Safe Sitter.

Fantasy of Trees

Since 1985, the Fantasy of Trees, an annual holiday event with activities and entertainment for families, has raised nearly $4.7 million for the hospital and hosted over a million visitors. Volunteers donate over 155,000 hours annually to support Fantasy of Trees.

References

External links

Child Health Corporation of America

Hospital Alliance of Tennessee

National Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions

Tennessee Hospital Association

University of Tennessee Dance Marathon
{{authority control Hospital buildings completed in 1937 Hospital buildings completed in 1970 Children's hospitals in the United States Hospitals in Tennessee Buildings and structures in Knoxville, Tennessee