Cardiology

The Department of Paediatric Cardiology provides cardiology services for children with heart disease in South Australia, the Northern Territory and the far western regions of Victoria and NSW.

The Cardiology Department has three Consultant Paediatric Cardiologists. The department conducts six outpatient clinics (for public and private patients) each week at the WCH as well as regular visiting clinics in Port Augusta, Mt Gambier, Alice Springs, Darwin, Katherine, Gove, Groote Eylandt and Mildura. A monthly clinic is also conducted at the Flinders Medical Centre in southern Adelaide .

Services provided include clinical consultation, transthoracic, transoesophageal and fetal echocardiography, 12 lead electrocardiography, ambulatory and event ECG monitoring, exercise stress testing, pacing, diagnostic and interventional cardiac catheterisation.

How to access the service

For general enquires or appointments within office hours, phone (08) 8161 7261. General after hours enquires can be recorded on the Cardiology message bank.

For urgent after hours calls the duty paediatric cardiologist can be contacted through the hospital switchboard phone (08) 8161 7000.

To make appointments at the Flinders Medical Centre, please call (08) 8204 5511 and ask for the Paediatric Clinic.

For a clinic appointment in Alice Springs, please call the Alice Springs Hospital on (08) 8951 7777 and ask for the Paediatric Clinic. For a clinic appointment in Darwin, Katherine, Groote Eylandt or Gove please call the Royal Darwin Hospital on (08) 8922 8888.

For all other country clinics please call the WCH Cardiology Office.

Information for families

Your child will need a current referral from a general practitioner, paediatrician or other specialist. If attending as a private patient, your child will be seen by the cardiologist nominated by you or your doctor. If attending as a public patient, your child will be seen by the duty cardiologist.

Whenever possible the department tries to perform any necessary tests on the day of your appointment. If several tests are needed the appointment can take up to three hours. Some tests will require you to return on another day. If so, the reasons for this will be explained at your appointment.

If your child has not been to the WCH previously you will need to register at the Patient Registration Office, in Paediatric Outpatients 1st Floor Rogerson Building, approximately 20 minutes before your appointment. A PMI (patient information) update form will be sent to you by the Cardiology Department for you to complete prior to your appointment. Please bring this with you on the day of your appointment. Please also bring a current referral letter, your Medicare card and health fund details (if appropriate).

Wards

Inpatients are usually nursed in Rose Ward if they are a baby, or in the 4th Floor Medical Ward for older children. Many of our patients will spend some time in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) or Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Patients admitted for elective cardiac catheterisation are usually admitted to DOSA / Campbell Ward.

Hours

General Business 9am to 5pm

Contact details

Units Head

Medical Unit Head
Dr Gavin Wheaton

Location

6th Floor Rieger Building

Mailing address

Cardiology Department
Women's and Children's Hospital
72 King William Road
North Adelaide
South Australia 5006

Phone/Fax/E-mail:

Ph (08) 8161 7261

Fax (08) 8161 7050

Back to Division of Paediatric Medicine

last modified: 06 Mar 2018

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