Monitoring of Surgical Site Infections

Infection control department

Download the leaflet

Monitoring of Surgical Site Infections (241kB pdf)

Any operation or procedure poses a risk of infection, although in most cases the risk is low. Your surgeon will discuss the specific risk to your child, as it is different depending on the type of surgery. An infection following surgery is an unpleasant experience. To help us understand why infections develop, and prevent them from happening, we need to ensure we know about any that occur. This information sheet describes an extra process we have put in place to monitor your child after their operation, both in hospital and at home.

What happens during my child’s stay?

During your stay following your child’s operation, in addition to all the routine care, they will be visited by a member of the Surgical Site Infection Surveillance (SSIS) Team. A surveillance officer will collect information about your child’s surgery and progress. If there are any issues, these will be discussed with your surgical team and the Infection Control Team as necessary.

What happens when we go home?

To enable our SSI team to monitor your child’s wound following discharge we need your help, and would ask you to answer a question 30 days after the operation.

You will receive a text message, to ask about your child’s wound.

Please note, text message will be completed 30 days after your child’s surgery not any earlier or later.

If your child has an implant during surgery you will be contacted a year after operation by a text message.

If you confirm that your child has had a problem with their wound you will be contacted by telephone to discuss this in more detail.

We will record in your child’s medical records if you respond to the text message.

If you change your contact details please let your surgical team know. We have an SSIS Email address [email protected] therefore parents and carers can change their contact details this way or ring the pathway co-ordinator for their surgical team and inform them of the change of details.

If your child has any problems with wound healing or shows any signs of wound infection, it is important that you follow advice given by your surgical team immediately.

Your child may have an infection if they develop one of the following symptoms:

The skin around their wound increasingly gets red or sore, or it feels hot and swollen.
The wound has a green or yellow coloured discharged (pus).
Your child feels generally unwell or feverish, or has a temperature.

For further information, please speak to the nurse in clinic or on the ward.

This leaflet only gives general information. You must always discuss the individual treatment of your child with the appropriate member of staff. Do not rely on this leaflet alone for information about your child’s treatment.

This information can be made available in other languages and formats if requested.