Pediatric Nursing

The pediatric nursing staff at Mass General for Children is specially trained to care for pediatric patients from newborn to adolescent, providing care that is technically advanced and developmentally appropriate.

The nursing staff is part of a team of care providers who focus on caring for the entire family with a strong emphasis on teaching. The staff also works to provide a healing environment for each child by meeting the child’s personal, spiritual and holistic needs including play and creativity.

We recognize that pediatric care is the beginning of the healthcare journey, and we are committed to providing the best possible care for life. We honor diversity, we encourage open discussion and we respect the parent’s and child’s right to participate in the planning of their care.

Part of the larger community of nursing services at Massachusetts General Hospital, pediatric nursing practice is driven by a spirit of inquiry, compassion, appreciation of lifelong learning and a willingness to share our expertise with others.

Magnet Nursing Status: First in Massachusetts

The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) formally designated Mass General as a “Magnet” hospital. Magnet designation represents the highest available honor for nursing excellence. In 2003, Mass General became the first hospital in the state to earn Magnet status.

Public Accountability

MassGeneral Hospital for Children is rated by PatientCareLink, a service of the Massachusetts Hospital Association, which ensures you will have access to information you need to make the best health care choices for you and your family. We’re proud of what we’ve done to improve quality and safety, and our commitment is ongoing.

Guiding Principles

• We recognize the importance of the family in the child’s life. We respect the family with its strengths, individual cultures and different methods of coping. We allow the child/family to define ‘family.’
• We accept accountability for the care we deliver and the system in which we deliver that care. We are always attempting to improve health care for children and families with systems improvement, research and evidence based practice.
• We provide a family-centered approach to care and service that is respectful, caring and personalized.
• We recognize the importance of family/professional collaboration and foster this collaboration at all levels of the healthcare system. We respect the family’s right to have complete and unbiased information about their  child, shared in a supportive manner. We encourage the family (and child) to participate in the decision-making process of the healthcare plan.
• We understand and incorporate the developmental and psychosocial needs of the infant, child, adolescent and family into our care.
• We acknowledge that we are most effective as a team and we regard the child and family as valuable members of that team.
• We enhance patient care and the systems supporting children’s services as we work with others, eagerly entering into new partnerships with individuals, groups and systems within and outside of Mass General.
• We view learning as a lifelong process essential to the growth and development of clinicians. We accept our responsibility to educate our new professionals and expand the knowledge of our entire staff who care for children and their families.
• We acknowledge that maintaining the highest standards of family-centered care is a priority. We will make decisions based on the most effective use of internal and external resources, realizing this is a never-ending process that involves all members of the institution, our patients and families, as well as the community at large.
• We honor the spirit of every child.

For more information about nursing at Mass General, please visit Patient Care Services.