Children's Hospital Colorado facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Children's Hospital Colorado
Geography
Location	13123 East 16th Avenue, Aurora, Colorado, United States
Coordinates	39°44′28″N 104°50′10″W / 39.741°N 104.836°W / 39.741; -104.836
Organization
Care system	Not-for-profit
Hospital type	Children's Hospital
Affiliated university	University of Colorado Denver
Services
Emergency department	Level 1 Pediatric Trauma Center
Helipad	(FAA LID: 2CD8)
Beds	More than 600
History
Founded	1908; 117 years ago (1908)

Children's Hospital Colorado (often called Children's Colorado) is a special hospital system just for kids. Its main hospital is in Aurora, near the Anschutz Medical Campus. This hospital is a teaching hospital, which means new doctors learn there.

The hospital system has over 600 beds for kids. These beds are spread across four hospitals in Aurora, Colorado Springs, Highlands Ranch, and Broomfield. Children's Colorado works with the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine. They offer many types of care for babies, children, teens, and young adults, usually up to age 21 or 25. Sometimes, they even treat adults who need special care meant for kids. It is the only children's hospital in Colorado that is officially recognized by the CHA. The hospital also has many smaller clinics and doctor's offices around Colorado. It has a special emergency center for serious injuries, called a Level 1 Pediatric Trauma Center. There's even a helipad on the roof to bring very sick patients quickly.

History of Children's Colorado

In the late 1800s, many parents brought their sick children to Colorado. They hoped the state's high elevation and sunshine would help them get better. To help these families, volunteers started the Babies Summer Hospital in 1897. These volunteers soon realized there was a big need for a permanent hospital. They wanted a place to care for "sick, injured and crippled children from birth to 16 years of age." This hospital would be supported by donations from volunteers. With this goal, they officially started The Children's Hospital on May 9, 1908.

In 1909, Children's Colorado turned an old house in Denver into a hospital. It had 30 beds and welcomed its first patients on February 17, 1910. Soon, the hospital became too small because so many children needed help. The hospital raised over $200,000 to build a new, bigger place. This new hospital opened in 1917 in downtown Denver. It was a "beautiful, new, green and white" building with 100 beds. The Denver Post newspaper said it had "every article of equipment known to science."

After growing and adding more parts to its downtown location over many years, Children's Hospital Colorado opened a brand new campus in Aurora. This happened on September 29, 2007. The new hospital is very large, about 1,440,000 square feet. It has 284 beds and special medical equipment made just for children. It also has inspiring artwork and comfortable places for families to stay.

On June 21, 2011, the hospital changed its name from The Children's Hospital to Children's Hospital Colorado. They made this change so people wouldn't confuse it with other hospitals around the country that had the same name.

In March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the hospital announced a temporary change. They started treating patients up to age 30. This helped reduce the pressure on adult hospitals that were very busy. Even though they treated younger adults, they did not accept patients with serious mental health issues, as that's not their main focus. This was a small change from their usual age limit of 25.

In 2022-23, U.S. News & World Report ranked Children's Hospital Colorado as the 7th best children's hospital in the United States.

In November 2020, famous actor Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson teamed up with Microsoft and Bill Gates. They donated Xbox Series X gaming consoles to Children's Hospital Colorado. They also gave consoles to 19 other children's hospitals across the country. This was a fun way to bring joy to kids in the hospital.

Special Programs and Care

Children's Hospital Colorado has many special programs to help kids with different health needs.

• Emergency Care: It is the only Level 1 Pediatric Trauma Center in Colorado. This means they are ready to handle the most serious injuries in children.
• Newborn Intensive Care: They have a Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). This is the highest level of care for newborns. They help nearly 750 babies each year from a 10-state area. It's the only NICU in the region with the experience and technology to treat almost any medical problem affecting newborns.
• Heart Institute: The Heart Institute at Children's Hospital Colorado is the biggest in the region. They treat over 20,000 heart patients every year. It is also one of only eight special research centers for children's hearts in the country. They even have a heart transplant program.
• Weight Management: Children's Hospital Colorado offers programs to help kids manage their weight and live healthier lives.
• Cancer and Blood Disorders: The Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders is the only pediatric cancer center in the Rocky Mountain region. They care for patients from birth to age 25. They also have special programs for brain tumors, teenagers with cancer, bone marrow transplants, and helping cancer patients protect their future ability to have children. They also test new medicines for cancer.
• Orthopedics: The Orthopedics Institute treats growing muscles, joints, and bones in children.
• Movement Analysis: The Center for Gait and Movement Analysis was one of the first labs in the world to use special technology. This technology helps doctors understand how kids move. It uses motion-capture, kinetics, and electromyography to find the best treatment.
• Breathing Institute: The Breathing Institute at Children's Hospital Colorado helped create many of the ways doctors treat and diagnose breathing problems in kids today. They were the first in the world to find and treat a lung disease called interstitial lung disease. They were also the first to use nitric oxide to treat high blood pressure in newborns and the first to start screening newborns for cystic fibrosis.

Working with the University

Children's Colorado is connected to the University of Colorado School of Medicine. This university has places for learning and research. Doctors from the Department of Pediatrics at the university also work at Children's Colorado.

Quick Facts from 2022

Here are some numbers that show how much Children's Hospital Colorado helps kids:

• Total Surgeries: 26,242
• Patients Admitted to the Hospital: 21,439
• Total Outpatient Visits (visits without staying overnight): 627,665
• Emergency and Urgent Care Visits: 212,286
• Total Employees: 8,437
• Total Volunteers: 2,661

Medical and Surgical Services

Children's Hospital Colorado treats children for many illnesses and performs surgeries in various areas:

Locations Around Colorado

Children's Hospital Colorado has many locations besides its main hospital. These include smaller hospitals, clinics, and treatment centers across the Front Range urban corridor. As of 2022, some of these locations are:

Children's Hospital Colorado Colorado Springs

• Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora (main hospital)
• Children's Colorado Health Pavilion, Aurora
• KidStreet, Aurora
• Orthopedic Care, Centennial
• Outpatient Care, Wheat Ridge
• Outpatient Care, Parker
• South Campus, Highlands Ranch
• Therapy Care, Highlands Ranch
• Therapy Care, Broomfield
• North Campus, Broomfield
• Children's Hospital Colorado Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs
• Outpatient Care at Briargate, Colorado Springs
• Memorial Hospital Central, Colorado Springs
• Therapy Care on Telstar, Colorado Springs

Awards and Recognition

Children's Hospital Colorado is known for its excellent care. For 2023–24, U.S. News & World Report ranked it among the best children's hospitals in the United States in all 10 pediatric specialties they review. It was also ranked #1 in Colorado and #1 in its region.

See also

• List of children's hospitals in the United States