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Transplant Unit Safety and Infection Control
The inpatient unit for Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy has safety guidelines that are designed to protect your child.
The Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy Unit (Transplant Unit) has more guidelines than other St. Jude clinical area. These guidelines protect transplant patients who have little or no immune systems. All patients and families must follow these rules during their time in the Transplant Unit.
Transplant Unit infection control
Infection prevention steps are critical for our patients who are treated with bone marrow transplants and cellular therapy. These patients have weak immune systems, so it is hard for them to fight off germs.
All family caregivers and visitors are screened for signs of illness before they enter the Transplant Unit each day. Staff, family caregivers, and visitors must use hand sanitizer or wash hands with soap and water:
- Each time they enter or leave the Transplant Unit.
- Each time they enter and leave the patient room. This includes when moving from the parent room to the patient room.
If your child is neutropenic (has a low neutrophil white blood cell count), they should wear a face mask when outside of their room. If your child has had an allogeneic bone marrow transplant, they must wear an N95 mask when outside of their room.
While inpatient, your child should stay in the Transplant Unit except for when they go to medical procedures. They should not visit Transplant Unit common areas such as the laundry room or Nutrition Center. Your child is allowed to visit the play area and the physical therapy room. Neither you nor your child may visit another patient room. Talk to your care team for more information.
Take note of these rules when planning a visit to the Transplant Unit. Visiting hours and other rules can change. Please check with the Transplant Unit for current policies.
- All caregivers and visitors, including family members, are screened each day for signs of illness. Anyone with signs and symptoms of illness may not visit the patient.
- Do not enter the Transplant Unit if you are sick or have been exposed to an illness.
- Patients from other hospital areas should not visit the Transplant Unit.
- Parents and other primary caregivers are not considered visitors. They may stay with their child 24 hours a day.
- Visiting hours are from 10 a.m.–9 p.m. daily
- Visitors are not allowed in the Transplant Unit common areas. This includes the laundry room, the Nutrition Center, and play areas.
- Visits between outpatient and inpatient rooms are not allowed.
- Only 1 caregiver may stay overnight in the patient’s room. They can sleep on the recliner or couch. The caregiver may not sleep on the floor or in the patient’s bed. If 1 caregiver is staying in the patient’s room, another caregiver may stay overnight in the parent room.
- No more than 3 people at a time can be in an inpatient’s room. This includes caregivers, siblings, and visitors. The patient is not included in this count.
- Please give your nurse 24 hours’ notice if you plan any change in caregivers. This will help staff prepare and possibly train other people to care for the patient.
- Some vaccines are made from live viruses. These can pose a threat to the health of patients in the Transplant Unit. Do not visit the Transplant Unit for:
- 4 weeks after a smallpox vaccine or oral polio vaccine
- 7 days after a FluMist flu vaccine
- 7 days after the chickenpox (varicella) vaccine and until any rash from the vaccine goes away
Your child’s room has a special air handling system that helps lower the number of germs. Please follow all Transplant Unit guidelines to help keep your child safe from infection.
Siblings and younger visitors
Siblings are welcome to visit in some cases, but they must follow Transplant Unit guidelines.
Siblings must be at least 7 years old to visit. They must be able to follow infection control guidelines. An adult should help younger visitors wash their hands and make sure that their hands are completely clean.
Visitors who are not siblings of the patient must be at least 16 years old.
There are 2 exceptions to the age limits:
- Transplant donor: If a sibling younger than 7 years old is the transplant donor, then the sibling can be present for the infusion of the donated bone marrow. Parents and staff should make sure that the sibling wants to attend and feels well enough after the donation procedure.
- End of life: If the patient is at the end of life, a sibling of any age may visit the patient room at any time and for any length of time.
Always watch your children closely while at St. Jude. Do not allow them to roam freely.
Patient and parent rooms
Each inpatient room has an attached parent room. Take care when going to and from the patient room, parent room, and common areas.
Do not allow anyone to use your child’s bathroom or sit on their bed. These areas are for your child only, even if your child is an infant. This helps lower the number of germs in your child’s room.
If your child is younger than 2 years old, they must sleep in a crib.
Do not allow your child into the parent room. Your child’s room is specially designed to keep air clean.
Do not return any food or drink to the Nutrition Center or to common areas such as the laundry room or play areas once it has been in your child’s room. Throw away opened food and drink when you finish it.
Family caregivers have their own private room that is connected to the patient’s room.
Personal items in patient rooms
Be sure to keep your child’s room clean and clear of extra personal items. All items in the room should be easy to clean. This includes toys or fun items. Choose items with hard surfaces, such as blocks, plastic dolls, laptops, or hand-held electronic games.
Limit personal items in your child’s room. Keep non-essential items in your room and bring them over to your child’s room as needed. Do not place any items on the floor of your child’s room. The cleaning staff will not move items to clean.
Do not bring flowers, live plants, or latex balloons into the Transplant Unit.
If you bring personal blankets, they must be washed daily. Do not bring stuffed animals, cloth toys, or house slippers with stuffing. Items with stuffing collect germs easily.
Please ask your nurse to call Biomedical Engineering if you bring an item that must be plugged into an outlet. Toys or devices that use batteries or charge by a wall adapter are OK to bring.
Return borrowed DVDs to the nurses’ station. The items will be cleaned before the next patient family uses them.
Personal care
Good personal hygiene is key to preventing infection while in the Transplant Unit.
Your child should brush their teeth 2 times each day with the toothbrush provided, use mouthwash 3 times a day, and apply lip balm 2 times a day.
Use chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) wipes for daily baths to help prevent infection. If your child has a central line, they should not have tub or shower bath while in the Transplant Unit because of the risk for central line infection. Your care team will let you know if a medical need makes an exception necessary.
Clean your child’s bottom and genital area with perineal wipes 2 times each day as instructed.
Your child cannot wear contact lenses, artificial nails, or pierced jewelry while in the Transplant Unit.
Your child cannot wear a wig while in the Transplant Unit.
If you have questions about the Transplant Unit guidelines, please talk to a member of your care team.