Shriners Hospitals for Children® – Respected Leadership in Burn Care

Since the Shriners Hospitals for Children® specializing in treating burns opened in the mid-1960s, the health care system has provided care for more than 50,000 patients with burn injuries. The interdisciplinary methods used by the staff of Shriners Hospitals for Children® ensure each patient receives complete, individualized care.

The range of treatments needed by patients with burn injuries can include surgeries, continuous internal feeding, infection control and procedures to lessen the effects of scarring. In addition, aggressive rehabilitation is typically necessary, including therapy to improve range of motion, and use of garments, splints and other orthotic appliances to improve patients’ ability and appearance. Once patients have recovered sufficiently to return to their homes and communities, Shriners Hospitals for Children® helps to ensure a smooth transition through its readjustment and re-entry programs.

The medical staff at Shriners Hospitals for Children® is renowned for their expertise in critical care, particularly in techniques that may help save the life of a patient with severe burn injuries. These techniques include fluid resuscitation, early excision and skin grafting, and management of increased metabolism.

Since Shriners Hospitals for Children® entered the burn care field, the survival rate for children with burns over more than 50 percent of their body surface has doubled. In addition, today, patients with burns over 90 percent can survive and go on to lead full, productive lives.

Shriners Hospitals for Children® is clearly a respected leader in the field of burn prevention and treatment. For example, Robert Sheridan, M.D., assistant chief of staff of Shriners Hospitals for Children® — Boston, is president of the American Burn Association (ABA). Other medical staff serve on the boards of trustees of the ABA and the Phoenix Society for Burn Survivors, two national organizations dedicated to improving the lives of those affected by burn injuries.

In order to provide the best, most innovative treatment to patients with burns and burn-related injuries, Shriners Hospitals for Children® is committed to research in burn care. Currently, the health care system is funding approximately 60 research studies involving different aspects of burn injury and treatment. These include tissue replacement; the relationship between nutrition and recovery; inflammation and immunity; wound healing; and psychological implications of burn injury. Shriners Hospitals for Children’s® researchers have been published in several prestigious publications, including the Journal of Burn Care Rehabilitation and Pediatric Critical Care.

Shriners Hospitals for Children® shares its expertise in burn care and research through academic affiliations at noteworthy institutions and through different medical outreach programs. In addition, Shriners Hospitals for Children® offers residency and fellowship programs, as well as opportunities for graduate students and post-doctoral researchers interested in the field.

While the health care system provides this expert care with no financial obligation to patients or families, the organization depends on the generosity of donors to support its mission of caring for children. To learn how you can help, please visit www.donate2SHC.org.