Children are not miniature adults.

Their physical and emotional needs are unique. When ill or injured, they require specialized care and equipment. They deserve a hospital where caregivers know hugs play an important role in healing, where laughter is prescribed in large doses, and where the whole family can find comfort in times of worry and stress.

T.C. Thompson Children's Hospital is the sort of full-service facility usually found only in very large cities. The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is designated Level III by the state, providing the very highest level of care for premature or sick newborns. The Pediatric Trauma Team, Emergency Department and Pediatric Intensive Care Unit provide immediate, 24-hour-a-day care for critically ill or injured children. Erlanger LifeForce Air Ambulance and the Neonatal/Pediatric Ground Transport make the services of Children's Hospital quickly accessible to pediatric patients throughout our region. No other facility in our region offers these services.

The programs and departments at Children's Hospital include the emergency, trauma and intensive care services mentioned above, as well as cardiology and cardiovascular surgery, pulmonology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, surgery and outpatient surgery, pediatric laboratory, medical genetics, comprehensive cancer and blood disorders, psychology, neurology, radiology, adolescent/young adult medicine, therapy services (audiology, physical and occupational and speech therapy), the Tennessee Craniofacial Center and Child Life.

To provide the best in children's healthcare requires not just special equipment or training-it takes viewing the world from the unique perspective of children and understanding what they need. Providing this special environment of healing for all children, regardless of their ability to pay, is the daily and ultimate goal of everyone at T. C. Thompson Children's Hospital. No other facility in the region can say they do the same.