Paediatrics — Puji Campus

The Department of Paediatrics at the Puji Campus of Dongguan People's Hospital was established in 2006, and in 2010 it was awarded the title "Dongguan Jinguo Wenming Gang" (东莞市巾帼文明岗, a model post for women). Through careful development it has made substantial progress, and the department now has a professional technical team with excellent comprehensive ability in clinical care, teaching and research, dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of respiratory, neuroimmune and digestive diseases in children. In 2021 the hospital was accredited as a CAAE Level II Epilepsy Centre, and Puji Campus Paediatrics is an important component of that centre. The department currently has 45 beds in use and admits about 3,000 patients each year.

The department currently has 2 chief physicians, 3 associate chief physicians and 3 attending physicians (Chinese professional-title system); 1 holder of a doctorate in medicine and 3 master's degree holders; 1 associate chief nurse and 11 "zhuguan hushi" (主管护师) nurses; 1 critical-care specialist nurse who trained in Hong Kong and 2 advanced paediatric nurses jointly trained by Guangdong and Hong Kong. It has emergency equipment including MAQUET ventilators, COMEN non-invasive ventilators, infant positive-pressure respiratory therapy devices, electronic bronchoscopes, PHILIPS defibrillators, EDAN electrocardiographs and advanced monitors, and is equipped with medical devices including 32-channel video electroencephalography systems and physiotherapy devices. All wards are fitted with equipment rails providing oxygen, compressed air and negative-pressure (suction) outlets.

It has considerable experience in the diagnosis and treatment of specialty diseases such as severe pneumonia, autoimmune diseases (severe lupus erythematosus, juvenile idiopathic arthritis), rare diseases and infectious diseases; it is particularly specialised in the diagnosis and treatment of infectious, hereditary and immune-mediated neurological diseases in children, and performs ketogenic diet therapy for drug-resistant epilepsy. It has successively received 1 second prize and 1 third prize of the Dongguan Science and Technology Progress Award, and leads research on key projects and general projects of the municipal social development science and technology programme. At the same time, the department undertakes teaching of undergraduate students from institutions of higher education including Sun Yat-sen University School of Medicine, Southern Medical University and Guangdong Medical University, and is a national standardised residency training base.

Strengths in technique 1. Standardised diagnosis and treatment of paediatric respiratory diseases, and comprehensive minimally invasive endoscopic techniques The department's paediatric respiratory group has built a mature and complete standardised system for the diagnosis and treatment of paediatric respiratory diseases, and is skilled in diagnosing and treating common and difficult conditions such as respiratory tract infections, chronic cough and bronchial asthma. Relying on multiple investigations including aetiological/pathogen testing, imaging, pulmonary function testing, FeNO and allergen screening, it precisely identifies the cause of chronic cough and avoids blind use of medication; following authoritative guidelines in China and abroad it carries out whole-course asthma management, tailors individualised stepwise plans, and combines health education and long-term follow-up to stabilise the child's condition. For severe pneumonia and refractory Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia it adopts combined therapy to reduce the risk of complications. The department performs minimally invasive diagnostic and therapeutic paediatric bronchoscopy, and is equipped with ultra-thin electronic bronchoscopes suitable for children of all ages; procedures are performed by a professional endoscopy team and include examination, bronchoalveolar lavage and pathogen testing, precisely guiding targeted treatment. This technique is minimally traumatic, diagnostically accurate and therapeutically effective, and effectively resolves difficult problems such as recurrent cough and wheezing, atelectasis and severe pulmonary infection, comprehensively protecting children's respiratory health. 2. Integrated diagnosis and treatment technology for neuropsychological developmental disorders in children Our department integrates the strengths of the child mental health centre and the paediatric neurology specialty to build an integrated system for the diagnosis and treatment of neuropsychological developmental disorders in children. The mental health centre serves people aged 0–18 and addresses developmental, behavioural and psychological problems such as autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), tic disorders, learning disorders, depression, sleep disorders and internet addiction; it adopts a multidisciplinary model combining psychological intervention, rehabilitation training, transcranial magnetic stimulation, biofeedback and other means, and runs specialist clinics providing individualised diagnosis and treatment. The paediatric neurology specialty is led by key physicians of provincial-level societies, and has deep expertise in the diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy and its comorbidities and of rare paediatric neurological diseases; it simultaneously carries out prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of brain diseases. The two specialties work in close coordination, addressing both organic lesions of the nervous system and psychological and behavioural abnormalities, and deliver a full-process service from aetiological assessment and precise treatment to long-term rehabilitation, safeguarding children's brain development and physical and mental health. 3. Diagnosis and treatment of severe systemic lupus erythematosus in children Systemic lupus erythematosus is an autoimmune disease affecting the connective tissue of multiple systems and organs throughout the body; because such diseases have diverse manifestations, a long course and complex treatment, they are often missed or misdiagnosed, and if not treated promptly and actively there is a potential risk of disability and death. The department has considerable experience in the diagnosis and treatment of paediatric rheumatic and immune diseases and admits throughout the year various rheumatic and immune diseases including severe systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Using immunological testing, specialty scales, renal needle biopsy and genetic testing, it can carry out early diagnosis and accurate assessment of systemic lupus erythematosus, lupus nephritis and neonatal lupus; in particular, for severe paediatric systemic lupus erythematosus and lupus nephritis, individualised treatment and management through the standardised use of immunosuppressants, biological agents and other means has, according to the department, produced good results. 4. Comprehensive treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disease in children, of which about 30% is drug-refractory. Our hospital was the earliest unit in the Dongguan area to be accredited as a CAAE Level II Epilepsy Centre, and the Department of Paediatrics is an important specialty group within it. The centre has comprehensive technologies including video electroencephalography, 3.0T magnetic resonance imaging with dedicated epilepsy sequences, gene sequencing, immune marker testing and genetic/metabolic testing; it regularly holds multidisciplinary joint diagnosis and treatment for children with difficult conditions, draws up precise diagnostic and treatment plans and, according to the hospital, achieves satisfactory efficacy.

Department group photo: Group photo of teachers and students of the teaching and research section: