If You Remember Nothing Else
- Follow the fasting times the team gives you, exactly. Write them down. Food too late can mean the operation is cancelled; too long without drinks makes children unwell.
- Tell the team if your child has a cough, cold, fever or rash in the week before, or has been around chickenpox or measles.
- Bring every paper: consent, HMO authorisation, test results, the child health card and a list of medicines.
- Tell your child the truth, in words that fit their age. Children cope better with honest preparation than with surprises.
- At home, give medicines as prescribed, keep the wound clean and dry, and know the date of the follow-up.
- A fever, a red or leaking wound, or pain that is getting worse means call or come back the same day. Difficulty breathing, heavy bleeding, a child who is hard to wake, severe pain not helped by the prescribed medicine, or a fever in a baby under 3 months means come in now.
This checklist goes with our guide to preparing your child for surgery, which explains what happens on the day and how to talk to children of each age. The paediatric surgery team gives you instructions for your child's operation. Where they differ from this page, follow the team.
The Days Before
With the Team
At Home
If Your Child Becomes Unwell in the Week Before
Call the surgical team if your child has a fever, cough, runny nose with green mucus, vomiting, diarrhoea, a new rash, or has been near someone with chickenpox or measles. An operation is sometimes safer a few weeks later, and the team decides this with you. Tell them before the day, not in the theatre waiting area.
The Night Before
Fasting and Getting Ready
The Morning of the Operation
Before You Leave Home
At the Hospital
What to Pack
For Your Child
For You
Papers to Bring
In One Folder
At Home Afterwards
Before You Leave the Ward
The First Days at Home
When to Call or Come Back
Come In Now
Emergency department, straight away
- Difficulty breathing, or blue or grey lips
- Very sleepy, hard to wake or confused
- A fit, or a swollen, hard tummy
- Bleeding from the wound that does not stop after 10 minutes of firm pressure
- After a tonsil operation: any fresh red bleeding from the mouth or nose
- Vomiting everything and not able to drink
- No wee for 8 hours or more, or straining but unable to pass any
- Severe pain not helped by the prescribed pain relief
- Temperature 38 °C or more in a baby under 3 months
Call the Team Today
Same day, not tomorrow
- Temperature 38 °C or more in a child over 3 months
- Wound red, hot, swollen, smelly, leaking pus, or opening
- Pain getting worse instead of better
- Passing much less urine than usual
- Not drinking well for more than a few hours
- A new rash
Usually Fine at Home
Mention it at the follow-up
- Sleepy and grumpy on the first day
- Vomiting once or twice on the first day
- A little bruising or a few spots of blood on the dressing
- Sore throat after the anaesthetic
- Clinginess or bad dreams for a week or two
If your child needs emergency care, come to Limi Children's Hospital now, day or night. If you cannot get here quickly, go to the nearest emergency department. Have someone else drive if you can, so you can watch your child, bring the discharge letter and medicines, and call 0813 408 5400 on the way so the team can prepare.
Questions Parents Ask
Why does my child have to fast?
During an anaesthetic the reflexes that stop food going into the lungs are switched off. An empty stomach makes that much safer. But children should not be kept without drinks for longer than the team says, so follow their times exactly, not longer and not shorter.
What if my child eats something by mistake?
Tell the team straight away, with what was eaten and when. Do not hide it. The operation may need to move to later in the day or to another day; that is far safer than going ahead.
Can I stay with my child?
Ask the team whether you can stay until your child is asleep or goes into theatre, and be called to the recovery area when they begin to wake. For inpatient stays, ask the care team about a parent staying overnight.
What should I tell my child?
The truth, simply. "The doctor is going to fix your tummy. You will have a special sleep so you don't feel anything, and I will be close by when you wake up." Do not promise it will not hurt at all; say the team will help if it does. Our guide to preparing for surgery has words for each age.
When can my child go back to school?
After a small day-case operation many children are back within a few days; after a bigger operation it can be two weeks or more, with sport and swimming later. Ask the team for your child's date and a letter for the school.
Will my HMO cover the operation?
Cover depends on your plan. Ask the care team what your HMO needs from the hospital, and ask your HMO for authorisation before the day. See HMO and payment information.
Limi Children's Hospital cares only for babies, children and teenagers. The paediatric surgery team works in the same hospital as our paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) and more than 30 specialties, with inpatient care day and night. Read about paediatric surgery at Limi Children's Hospital.
Sources
- Royal College of Anaesthetists. Your child's general anaesthetic (information for parents and carers).
- Association of Paediatric Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland, European Society for Paediatric Anaesthesiology and L'Association des Anesthésistes-Réanimateurs Pédiatriques d'Expression Française. Consensus statement on clear fluids fasting for elective paediatric general anaesthesia. 2018.
- American Academy of Pediatrics. Preparing your child for surgery (HealthyChildren.org).
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Surgical site infections: prevention and treatment (NG125). 2019, updated 2020.
- World Health Organization. Global guidelines for the prevention of surgical site infection. 2nd edition, 2018.
Written for parents and carers in NigeriaClinically reviewed by Limi Children’s Hospital cliniciansLast updated September 2026Next review due September 2027