A Kid's Guide to Surgery

You're having surgery! You're in great hands at Northern Ohio Surgical Center. Her is what will happen when you come in for your surgery visit. And don't worry, surgery is something that your parents and doctor want you to have so that you can feel better!

Your surgery will be done in our special building. When you come in for surgery, it could be early in the morning. You can wear your pajamas if you want to. Make sure you eat a healthy dinner the night before your surgery, because guess what? You won't be able to eat or drink anything on the morning of your surgery. Do you know why? Food in your stomach when you have surgery might give you a tummy ache.

Oh! And you can bring your favorite toy or blanket with you when you come!

Surgical Coloring Book

Help Prepare Your Child for Surgery using our Educational Coloring Book

Click here to download our coloring book!

The free Adobe Reader is needed to download the file. Click here
if you do not have the Adobe Reader

You are going to get your own special bracelet with your name on it.

Everybody at the surgical center wants to help you get better, so if you don't understand something, be sure and ask questions. The nurses will help you understand.

Surgery Bracelet A really nice nurse will take you and your Mom or Dad to the Pre-Op area where you will have your very own bed. The nurse will use a blood pressure cuff around your arm to find our how fast or slow your blood moves. Stickers will be put on your chest so we can see your heart beat on our special TV!

A doctor called an Anesthesiologist will come in to introduce himself to you. The Anesthesiologist is a special kind of doctor that keeps you asleep so the doctors can do their surgery. He will listen to your heartbeat with his stethoscope.

Now you are ready to go to the Operating Room! This is where your doctor will do the surgery, but don't worry about your parents. They will be close by in the waiting room.

Anesthesiologist How do you get to the Operating Room if you are in bed?? Oh, we forgot to tell you that your bed has wheels and the nurses can roll you around while you lay in bed! They will have on special clothes and masks and hats, but don't be afraid...they are doctors and nurses too. They just wear those because we want to keep all the germs out of your room!

Remember that special doctor that came to listen to your heart? He has special nurses called Nurse Anesthetists that he picks to take care of you while you are in the Operating Room. Those nurses help you to go to sleep for your surgery. When you get to the Operating Room, you'll see big machines and lights. Your Nurse Anesthetist will let you wear a mask that's connected to a balloon. As you breathe into the mask, the balloon fills up with air. This is how you fall asleep.

Next thing you know.you're all done! You'll wake up in the Recovery Room when your surgery is finished. How did you get there?! Remember, your bed has wheels on it. Your nurses roll you to the Recovery Room so you can wake up and see your parents again. You might not feel so good right when you wake up, but you'll feel better soon. While you are waking up, your doctor goes to the waiting room and talks to your parents to tell them all about your surgery and how well you did. Your parents will come meet you in the Recovery Room after they talk to your doctor. We even have rocking chairs so your parents can rock you to help you feel better!

Now its time to go home!