Project leads: Karen Wilson, Hala El Mikati and Caren Goldberg (Pediatric Cadiology)

Background: “Rooming in,” sometimes called a “block of care,” is especially important for pediatric cardiac patients because these children often have complex medical needs that require close caregiver involvement, continuity, and emotional support. Keeping parents or caregivers closely involved during hospitalization helps improve both clinical care and family well-being.

For infants and children with heart disease, parents are not simply visitors — they are essential members of the care team. Many cardiac patients require complicated medication schedules, feeding plans, monitoring, and recovery routines that caregivers will eventually manage at home. Rooming in gives families the opportunity to learn these skills directly from clinicians in real time, helping them feel more prepared and confident before discharge.

Project aim: To evaluate whether caregivers of hospitalized cardiology patients age one year and under experience equitable "block of care"  treatment across racial and socioeconomic groups, and to identify potential inequities in family-centered care practices. 

Project status: This project is in quality improvement to help with documentation of when patients need block of care and who receives it.