Safely helping patients relax during procedures and tests

Sedation Program

Sedation services at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford are a safe way to reduce fear and anxiety during procedures. Sedation is used to help many children get through various tests and procedures by giving medicine to help them relax and complete the procedure safely.

We offer sedation services for patients in inpatient and outpatient settings. We pride ourselves on using a customized approach to sedation, with both pharmacological and nonpharmacological methods, to ensure that every child’s individual needs are met. Our team offers IV, oral, nasal, and inhaled sedation options to provide minimal and moderate sedation. Our family-centered sedation services are tailored to meet your child’s needs before, during, and after their procedure.

We can provide sedation during many tests and procedures, including:

  • Foley catheter placement
  • Imaging studies, like MRI and CT
  • IUD placement
  • IV insertions
  • Lab draws
  • Laceration repairs
  • Lumbar punctures
  • Minor surgical procedures
  • Nasogastric tube placement
  • Peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC line) placement and removal
  • Vaccines
  • Wound care

Our sedation team

Our team consists of pediatric hospitalists, dedicated sedation nurses, and a parent mentor. Our hospitalists are specially trained to administer sedative medications, monitor your child, and help them after their procedure. Our service has the first sedation-dedicated parent mentor in the country to help you navigate through the system. We also partner with Child Life Specialists, who will help you and your child throughout the treatment process.

As a designated Center of Excellence in Pediatric Sedation by the Society for Pediatric Sedation, we are committed to safe and effective procedural sedation. Our experts apply current best practices in a patient- and family-centered environment with continual self-review, evaluation, and changes aimed at achieving the highest quality of care.

If you think your child could benefit from sedation during an upcoming test or procedure, talk to your child’s care team.

Five-year-old Emmett, who receives monthly infusions to treat ulcerative colitis, used to wriggle and feel anxious during his IV placements. But with the use of nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, Emmett is no longer scared. Emmett and his care team pretend that he’s an astronaut going into space while he receives the nitrous oxide. He even tells his classmates about his infusions.