Butterfly Ward

Butterfly Ward cares for patients from all over the world, predominantly for haematology, oncology, immunology, gene therapy and BMT.

Butterfly Ward has 18 single patient rooms including four bone marrow transplant (BMT) isolation rooms, and four day-care beds in an open bay called Dragonfly.

Our patients range in age from newborn to 16 years old, although most are under eight.

Butterfly Ward is on Level 4 of the Octav Botnar Wing. It is part of the International and Private Patient Service. 

Contact

Butterfly Ward telephone number: +44 (0)20 7829 8645

Inpatients administration: +44 (0)20 7762 6822

Case Manager: +44 (0)20 7762 6716

If your child has any additional needs, please call in advance to let us know.

Butterfly Ward is primarily run by our highly qualified nursing team, but also includes consultants, doctors, clinical nurse specialists, physiotherapists, healthcare assistants, play specialists, psychologists and house-keeping staff.

Your child’s consultant, supported by a team of specialist doctors, has overall responsibility for their treatment and care. They will review your child regularly and answer your questions.

The International and Private Patient Service also has its own consultant led, ward-based team of doctors who see patients every day.

They act as a link between the child’s consultant, nurses and you. They will also be able to answer many of your questions.

Other key members of staff on the ward include:

• Head of Nursing: Kate Rivett
• Matron: Claudia Tomlin
• Ward Manager: Laura Graham

Butterfly is a multi-specialty ward but mainly treats haematology and oncology, immunology and bone marrow transplant patients.

For more detailed information on a specific area of expertise, please visit our clinical specialties section.

If you would like to speak to someone about your child's admission please contact our Butterfly Ward case manager.

This ward specialises in haematology, oncology, BMT and other medical specialties, although patients from all specialties are treated here.

You can learn more about our clinical specialties below:

• Haematology and oncology information for parents and visitors

• Bone marrow transplant (BMT) information for parents and visitors

• Immunology information for parents and visitors

You are a valued member of your child's healthcare team and we encourage you to take part in their care as much as possible while in hospital.

We ask parents are ready in the morning to help care for their child. Early each morning there is a daily ward round, led by a team of doctors and nurses, and it is important that you attend these. During this time your child’s condition will be assessed and important information around treatment will be communicated to you at this point. We also ask that you are an active participant in your child’s hygiene needs – a nurse will discuss this with you.

Each ward has a parents' kitchen where food can be reheated only, not cooked from fresh. Bumblebee provides breakfast, lunch dinner and an afternoon snack to the parent who is resident with the child.

Food in the refrigerator must be dated and labelled with the stickers provided. This helps us keep track of out-of-date items and make sure they are thrown away.

There are shops and cafes in the hospital for parents, children and visitors to buy refreshments, including snacks and hot meals. Raw food must not be cooked in the kitchen.

Free tea and coffee, biscuits, bread and cereal are all available in parents’ kitchen.

Laundry facilities (a washing machine and tumble dryer) are provided free of charge and are situated on Butterfly Ward. There is no need for detergent or fabric conditioner as the washing machine dispenses these automatically. Operation instructions are provided in the laundry. Please speak to the housekeeper if you need any assistance. Please do not wash and dry clothes in your child’s rooms.

Each room has its own bedside entertainment centre, which gives access to television stations, games and music. We can receive various English-language channels plus Arabic and Greek channels.

You can use your mobile phone inside the hospital but only in designated mobile-friendly zones. Using your mobile elsewhere could interfere with our medical equipment. There is WiFi available on the ward.

Interpreting support

We provide a 24-hour telephone interpreting support service for all languages. Arabic Interpreters provide an interpretation and translation service for some families and patients. They are based on the ward and will help you settle in.

The Trust also uses The Big Word for families needing an interpreter. It is available 24 hours a day. If you need to use The Big Word please ask one of the nursing team for the contact details when you arrive.

Interpreting hours on the ward:
8.00am–8.00pm Monday–Friday
7.30am–8.00pm Saturday
8.30am–4.30pm Sunday (and Bank Holidays)

More information

For more information about facilities available for parents, family members, visitors and patients in the hospital, including the Chapel and multi-faith room, hospital school, activity centre and information on where you can eat or find facilities such as launderettes, please visit our Facilities A-Z page.

For parents

You are a valued member of your child’s health care team and we encourage you to take part in their care as much as possible while in hospital.

Only one parent is allowed to stay overnight at the bedside due to health and safety risks.

Inpatient rooms

All inpatient rooms have en suite bathrooms with a shower and have a parent's bed close to the child's bed to enable a parent to stay overnight. There are also two larger bathrooms on the ward which have disabled access and hoists. Linen is provided for both beds but we do ask parents to make their beds. Storage space and a safe are available in each room.

The storage space is limited so we would ask you to try and keep items brought into the hospital to a minimum. 

We can provide towels but we ask you to provide toiletries for your child and yourself.

Parents lounge and laundry

There is a special lounge for parents opposite the playroom on the ward. This sitting area has a television with multiple channels in a variety of different languages and reading material including daily English and Arabic newspapers.

There are free laundry facilities including a washing machine and tumble dryer on the ward. We ask you not to wash or dry clothes in your child’s room.

Food for parents

Each ward has a parents’ kitchen with a microwave and a fridge. These facilities are for food to be reheated not cooked from fresh. Please do not take uncooked meat or fish onto the ward. 

Food in the refrigerator must be dated and labelled with the stickers provided. This helps us keep track of out of date items and make sure they are thrown away. The fridge is cleaned every day any any out-of-date items will be discarded by the housekeepers.

Tea, coffee, biscuits, milk, bread and breakfast cereals are all available in the kitchen for you - please help yourself to these items. There is a restaurant and a cafe in the main part of the hospital that provides Halal and Kosher food. There are also many restaurants and cafes outside of the hospital on Lamb's Conduit Street, or in the nearby Brunswick Shopping Centre.

All rooms house a digital on-demand patient entertainment system with access to over 40 Arabic channels, as well as other language channels, the internet and video games. 

Play and school

Butterfly Ward has a play specialist who organises activities in the playroom and at the bedside.

The play specialist offers age-appropriate play that can help to prepare your child for the procedures they have in hospital. Play activities are available for children of all ages and include games, painting, video games and soft toys.

Schoolteachers work with children at the discretion of nursing and medical staff.

Teaching is done on an individual basis, usually by the bedside, although there is a school in the hospital for children who are mobile and able to join a small group.

Arabic interpreting assistants

We provide a dedicated Arabic interpreting service on the ward. Arabic interpreting assistants provide an interpretation and translation service in order to facilitate a therapeutic relationship between the patient and family and healthcare providers based within the Trust.

There are two Arabic interpreting assistants based on the ward during the day and we can also find translators in other languages if necessary. The Trust also uses The Big Word for families needing an interpreter. It is available 24 hours a day. If you need to use The Big Word please ask one of the nursing team for the contact details when you arrive.