The Inpatient Rehab Team (IRT) works with infants, children, and youth who have experienced a significant functional change after an illness, injury, or surgery, that is not expected to resolve quickly with routine medical treatment.
Referrals are made to IRT by involved physicians who have determined that a patient would benefit from more intensive support with rehabilitation after an illness, injury, or surgery.
How We Help
- Help your family understand your child’s condition and rehabilitation.
- Support your family in identifying coping skills and supports.
- Assist your child and family with setting goals during the rehab process. We like to link goals to the 'F-words' in child development (Function, Family, Fitness, Fun, Friends and Future) that are grounded in the World Health Organization's International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) framework
- Link your family with services in the community.
- Support and assist in the planning discharge and return to school. The team will work with your child’s school to help them understand their needs.
- Offer consistent contacts who will check in with your family as needs change and to offer continued support.
What to Expect
Once a request is sent to IRT, the team rehab physician and/or team lead will usually gather more information and meet with you within 24-48 hours. We will make recommendations and help to determine next steps in your rehab journey. Sometimes this may involve working with our team members more intensively on physical rehab (how you move and participate in daily activities) and/or cognitive rehab (how you think, learn, and remember). We will also help you with coping and adjustment to your experience.
Usually we recommend structure and routine in your day. We will suggest things such as keeping a schedule, getting dressed in the day, having good sleep habits, and eating healthy meals. We will also encourage some rest time as well as some play time and fun.
We include patients and families in our team discussions, as we see you as the most important team members. We have weekly patient rounds, which you will be invited to. We will ask you to be thinking about goals that are important to you, things that have been going well, and things you would still like to work on. We try very hard to make sure we are focusing on your goals!
As we come close to the end of your inpatient stay, we will coordinate with community providers including your school, community physio and occupational therapists, and any other care providers that will be supporting you when you go home. We usually have a discharge planning meeting and provide you with a written summary for your reference.
Who You'll Meet
The Inpatient Rehab Team is interprofessional, which means that you will meet different types of care providers, depending upon your needs. Our team members include a Team Lead, Rehab Physician, Clinical Dietitian, Occupational Therapist, Physiotherapists, Psychologist, Rehab Assistants, Social Worker, and Speech Language Pathologist. We also have Child Life Specialists, Music Therapists, Nursing liaisons, Pharmacists, and School Teachers who work closely with our team.
We are a teaching hospital, which means that you will often meet learners as well. This could include practicum students, medical students, and residents. Learners will always be supervised by a member of our team.
Accessing this Clinic, Program or Service
How to Find Us
Often if patients are admitted under the Inpatient Rehab Team, their room will be on the Medical, Surgical and Neurosciences Unit (MSNU). This unit is located on the 7th floor of the Link Building. You can get there using the green elevators.
The inpatient rehab team sometimes supports patients on other inpatient units, including the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) or the Pediatric Medical Unit (PMU).
Link Building - IWK Health Centre
The Medical, Surgical and Neurosciences Unit (MSNU) is located on the 7th floor of the Link Building. You can get there using the green elevators.
The inpatient rehab team sometimes supports patients on other inpatient units, including the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), located on the 3rd floor of the Link Building, or the Pediatric Medical Unit (PMU), which is located on the 7th floor of the Children's Building (accessed using the blue elevators).