South West UK Children's Burn Centre, Bristol Royal Hospital for Children. University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust

The South West UK Children’s Burn Centre based at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children and part of University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust treats around 1,000 children with new burn injuries every year.

They aim is to provide the highest quality care for children with burns, scalds and skin loss conditions including Staphylococcal Scalded Skin Syndrome, Toxic Epidermolysis Necrosis and Plastic surgery care following meningococcal septicaemia.

As the Children’s Burn Centre for the South West UK Burns Operational Delivery Network (ODN) they accept referrals of complex burns in children from the Central South Coast and South Wales and the South West.

They provide the highest quality, equitable, child/family friendly burn care for all children and their families, to achieve the best possible outcomes following burn injury within the South West Operational Delivery Network (ODN).

The service is based on Level 5 within the Bristol Royal Hospital for Children with ward and rehabilitation paediatric burn beds, thermo-regulated high-dependency beds and access to Paediatric Intensive Care level beds. Dedicated play and therapy spaces are within the Ward/HDU. The HDU burns assessment area has direct access via a dedicated patient lift from A&E and the on-site helicopter deck. Rapid access to a purpose built burns theatre is also via this lift to Level 4. 

The Burns Outpatient Dressing Clinics are located next to the ward and are open 8am-4pm Monday to Friday. The clinic offers nurse led appointments each day for dressing changes and wound reviews. New referrals are accepted into clinic. Out of hours, new referrals are seen in the Burns Assessment area.

The multi-disciplinary burns clinics led by the Burns Consultants are held twice a week and support wound reviews and follow up attended by the Scar Management team, Physiotherapy and Clinical Psychology. Led by Occupational Therapists, the Scar Management service runs separate clinics on a weekly basis. 

A well-established dedicated Children's Burns Outreach Nursing Team provides wound care and advice to burn injured children and families across the network and wound care and burns education to professionals.

For advice on referring small paediatric burns see: Small Paediatric Burns Referral Criteria Poster - FINAL 2019.pdf

Tele-referrals must be made via the MDSAS Burn Tele-referral system and any injury images or additional documents can be uploaded via the SID-Secure Image Data App.  Referrers must also phone the Burn Service once the referral has been submitted.  Please see full instructions and guidance via:

SWUK UHBristol How to refer to Bristol Paediatric Burn Centre using Telemedicine

Further information about tele-medicine system can be found on the Tele-referral page.

For more information visit the SWUK Paediatric Burn Centre website.