Page 8 - MidWeek - January 25, 2023

8 MIDWEEK JANUARY 25, 2023
Dr. Russell Woo is a pediat- ric general and thoracic sur- geon who was instrumen- tal in Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children becoming the first and only medical center in Hawai‘i to achieve a prestigious national distinction for excellence in pediatric surgery. Just a few months ago, Kapi‘olani became one of only about 50 hospitals across the coun- try to earn Level 1 Children’s Sur- gery Verification from the American College of Surgeons.
DR. RUSSELL WOO, medical director for children’s surgery at Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children Interviewed by Don Robbins
Valuing Comprehensive Keiki Care
sure we have all the resources our patients need for the quickest and best possible recovery. It’s also supporting a skilled team of pedi- atric surgeons, ensuring that they have the specialized resources and equipment that they need to provide state-of the-art surgical care. More broadly, our program works with community outreach programs to educate people on injury prevention and managing chronic illnesses to help them avoid needing surgery. Lastly, I work with the University of Hawai‘i John A. Burns School of Medicine to train the next genera- tion of physicians and surgeons.
As a children’s surgery center, Kapi‘olani provides a range of sur- gical services for families across the state and the Pacific region. This can range from correcting hernias and removing tonsils, to caring for sports and trauma-related injuries, to treating premature newborns with congenital defects, as well as car- ing for pediatric cancer patients. We perform procedures across the range of pediatric specialties, including
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comprehensive list of more than 140 requirements and consider- ations. These include the number of pediatric specialty surgeons on staff, specific pediatric training for medical teams and how long it takes to respond to any patient request. But what is just as important is that medical centers must show consis- tent, effective processes to assess and improve patient outcomes and experiences. This verification was a big commitment that involved the entire team at Kapi‘olani — from physicians to nurses to everyone in- volved in patient care. We are very proud of this distinction.
ophthalmology, urology, neurosur- gery and more.
I love children, and the idea of being able to save an entire lifetime was very compelling. I’m a trained adult surgeon and found a lot of sat- isfaction in helping those patients. But when you treat a newborn who may not survive a day without your help, then have the opportunity to see that child grow to become an adult and have a family, it is an honor.
How does pediatric surgery differ from general surgery for adults? The conditions are often dif-
In this article, Woo elaborates fur- ther on his role and the significance of the medical center’s verification.
Dr. Russell Woo (right) consults with Dr. Michale Sofer (left), Kapi‘olani pediatric anesthesiologist. PHOTOS COURTESY HAWAI‘I PACIFIC HEALTH
you need with children. How you take care of an infant is different than how you care for a preschool- er, an adolescent or young adult. So, our pediatric teams learn how to connect with kids at every age and how to communicate with their families because when you treat a child, in many ways you’re treating the entire family.
What do you do as the medical di- rector for pediatric surgery?
What treatments are the patients typically seeking?
What does this national distinc- tion mean for patients and their families?
My role is to facilitate teams and coordinate programs to provide the best comprehensive care for kids in Hawai‘i before, during and after surgery. This means working with primary care physicians and other specialists to ensure patients and their families are as prepared as possible — medically and mentally. Then, it’s working with the nurses, hospital-based doctors, therapists and other team members to make
ferent. A big part of what we do is correct congenital disorders in newborns who need the procedure immediately to survive. The med- ical considerations are also differ- ent for children than adults. Finally, operating on a patient who weighs just ounces requires specialized training, tools and techniques. That is why the medical staff at Kapi‘ola- ni is specially trained for pediatrics. Then, there is the personal touch
What does it take to earn a Level 1 Children’s Surgery Verification? The ACS Children’s Verification
Hawai‘i is 3,000 miles away from the next children’s hospital, and not every patient or family is physically or financially able to travel that far. Level 1 Children’s Surgery Verifi- cation demonstrates that Kapi‘olani provides world-class care that is as high quality and state-of-the-art as mainland facilities. It also comes with an expectation that we will build upon that.
Why did you decide to specialize in pediatric surgery?
Program evaluates hospitals on a
Our primary care physicians focus on prevention and overall wellness. They also provide you and your family access to hundreds of specialists and more than
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