Paragraph 2: Special conditions for facilities dedicated to paediatric cardiac surgery

The full-time inpatient unit has a sufficient number of dedicated beds and the necessary staff to be able to provide pre- and post-operative cardiac surgery care for newborns and children at any time.

The medical staff provided for in article D. 6124-122 is completed by at least one practitioner experienced in haemodynamic and interventional paediatric cardiology. The surgeons must have training and proven experience in congenital heart disease surgery in accordance with the procedures specified by order of the Minister for Health. They ensure continuity of care. Specialist doctors and a masseur-physiotherapist provide care for the child as required.

Intensive care is provided either in a paediatric intensive care unit specialising in cardiac surgery, or in a separate sector within a paediatric intensive care unit. It includes medical equipment adapted to newborns and children, in particular an extrarenal purification unit and a phototherapy unit.

Paediatric cardiac pathologies can only be treated surgically if the cardiac surgery facility is able to carry out the following examinations or have them carried out, around the clock, within a timeframe compatible with the life-threatening emergency: – blood gas tests, biological tests using microtechniques and haemostasis tests ; – two-dimensional transthoracic and transoesophageal echocardiography using mobile equipment with probes; – electroencephalography and transfontanellar ultrasound ; – respiratory endoscopy ;…

The protected interventional unit in which paediatric cardiac surgery is carried out includes medical devices adapted to newborns and children, in particular for extracorporeal blood circulation equipment, respirators and prolonged circulatory assistance equipment.