Many common childhood gastrointestinal problems such as uncomplicated gastro-oesophageal reflux, abdominal pain and constipation can be managed well by general paediatricians and GPs without needing input by the Paediatric Gastroenterology & Hepatology Service. Our service primarily manages serious, long-term gastroenterology and hepatology conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, liver disease and intestinal failure.
We have updated our referral criteria in 2014 for GPs and paediatricians.
REFERRAL OUTCOMES
Urgent assessment
If your child has an urgent problem, they will be assessed in the Children's Emergency Department at Starship Hospital. Based on your child’s condition they may be admitted to Starship Hospital for ongoing care or follow-up arranged at the outpatient clinics.
Patients from outside of Auckland will be assessed by their local paediatrician who will discuss with the on call paediatric gastroenterologist & hepatologist at Starship. Appropriate arrangements for transfer to Starship can then be made if required.
Other assessment
If your child has a less urgent problem, a letter of referral will be sent to our department. A senior doctor will look at the letter and a decision will be made based on the information provided in the letter. We are not able to see all children referred to us and many conditions can be looked after by general paediatricians. Possible outcomes from referral include:
- Outpatient clinic appointment:
An appointment will be offered. For most referrals this will be within a month. All children will be seen within 4 months. If your child's symptoms are getting worse while waiting, please see your General Practitioner or paediatrician again.
- More investigations are needed:
Sometimes, when we read the referral letter, we feel it would be useful for your child to have more tests, either to decide whether we need to see your child or to provide valuable information for when we see your child. These tests may be blood, urine or faecal (stool) tests or radiological tests (eg. X-rays or ultrasound scans). In this case we will write to your referring doctor asking them to arrange these tests, then refer your child when the tests have been done.
For some conditions your child may be booked directly to endoscopy without being seen in clinic first. The reason for this is to decrease delay prior to treatment. Both you and the referring doctor will be sent a letter explaining this. If you have any concerns or questions please contact the team via our secretary (extension 22292 at Starship Hospital) as we can see you in clinic to discuss things more fully, if necessary. Endoscopy waiting times are currently 8-12 weeks.
- Referral to another service:
Straightforward cases may be referred back to your referring doctor (as explained above) with written advice or we may suggest a more suitable service to see your child.
Sometimes your child may already be receiving appropriate management from their general practitioner or general paediatrician and we will not need to see them. In this case, an appointment is not made and we write back to the referrer. Should symptoms change, a re-referral to our service can be made.
