The fellowship is an intensive experience in the administration of anesthesia to newborns, premature infants, toddlers and older children. Upon completion of the fellowship, the anesthesiologist typically enters a pediatric-based anesthesia practice, to maintain and further refine their skills. Children, especially young children, are not just miniature adults. They are growing and changing in ways that adults do not. Their social and psychological needs are also different from those of adults.
Children are a lot smaller and come in a large range of sizes.
This changes certain technical aspects of anesthesia and necessitates the ready availability of different sizes and types of equipment. To safely care for children, especially babies and toddlers, pediatric anesthesiologist are best equipped to understand how their bodies work, how they react to medications and anesthesia and how the illnesses they suffer from differ from those in older patients. At Children's Memorial Hospital, the anesthesiologists are all fully trained in pediatric anesthesia and are in full-time pediatric anesthesia practice.