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Department of Pediatrics Program Director: Dr. Charlotte Barbey-Morel |
We currently follow approximately 40 families with HIV-infected children, most of the children being infected since birth.
The majority of mothers are infected as well. For those who get their care at Georgetown Medical Center from Dr. Young, Dr. Kumar and their group, we tried to coordinate the visit of the mom and the baby to lessen the number of trips to Georgetown University Hospital.
In general, for clinic visits, we adjust to the family’s schedule rather than having a fixed clinic-day. One of the three attending physicians from the Division of Infectious Diseases always sees and examines the children personally: Dr. Charlotte Barbey-Morel, Pediatric HIV-Program Director, Dr. Raoul Wientzen, and Dr. Thomas Rubio. During nights and weekends, they are the ones to answer the calls directly as well. If a child needs to be in the hospital, (s)he is under the direct supervision of one of these three attendings. We provide care for these children either as consultants with close interaction with the primary care pediatrician or as the primary attending physician.
We offer a family-based approach, where we get to know all members of the family, offer as much support as we can through the 'ups and downs' of medical, and sometimes, social problems. Medical staff, Georgetown University students and families get together at Christmastime and during the summer to give and share toys, clothes, food, and mostly, to have a good time.
