Jan. 11, 2019

Mayo Clinic is collaborating with local hospitals to provide certain pediatric neurological and neurosurgical services at its campuses in Phoenix/Scottsdale, Arizona, and Jacksonville, Florida. The collaboration offers pediatric patients in those regions access to Mayo Clinic's expertise in those specialties.

Mayo Clinic in Phoenix/Scottsdale, Arizona

Mayo's collaboration with Phoenix Children's Hospital focuses on spinal surgery. Many of the cases involve complex reconstructive surgery for children and adolescents with scoliosis, or revision surgery for patients who had spinal operations elsewhere.

"We're now able to care for these patients here, rather than referring them to another center," says Jamal McClendon Jr., M.D., a neurosurgeon at Mayo's campus in Arizona.

Decisions about whether a particular patient's surgery is performed at Mayo or Phoenix Children's Hospital depend mostly on the patient's age. "If we see a 12-year-old who has a spinal deformity or progressive curvature of the spine, we often facilitate that patient's surgery at Phoenix Children's. But a 20-year-old who has had previous fusion or scoliosis surgery and requires more surgery might have that at Mayo Clinic," Dr. McClendon says.

The collaboration continues with post-surgical care. "Our work with Phoenix Children's allows for joint follow-up and a seamless transition between both institutions," Dr. McClendon says. "We have created an environment where patients receive the level of dedication and care necessary to see their conditions through from childhood into the adult years."

Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida

Mayo's collaboration with Wolfson Children's Hospital offers a similar advantage. "We have a relationship so that children initially treated at Wolfson Children's can transition their care to Mayo," says Selby G. Chen, M.D., a neurosurgeon at Mayo's campus in Florida.

The collaboration in Florida focuses on tumors, with neurosurgeons from Wolfson Children's Hospital consulting Mayo Clinic specialists about cases. "We can provide multidisciplinary discussions with our radiation oncologists, medical oncologists and neurosurgeons," Dr. Chen says. In addition, Mayo's fourth-year residents at the Florida campus are able to do a four-month rotation in pediatric neurosurgery at Wolfson Children's Hospital.

All Mayo Clinic campuses have subspecialized expertise, including spinal surgeons with training in complex spinal deformities. "For all our patients we offer a level of attention to detail that is difficult to find elsewhere," Dr. McClendon says. "Although pediatric cases can be highly complex, we and our collaborating institutions have the resources to treat them."