- Get your child’s ID armband and schedule at Patient Registration.
- If the schedule has a visit to Pre-Clinic Assessment, go there first.
- If the schedule does not include Pre-Clinic Assessment, go to the patient representative at your next scheduled location.
- Go to your child’s primary clinic visits. During these visits, the doctor will write orders for medicines or services your child will get in the Infusion Center. After you leave the clinic, the care team will process the doctor’s order.
- Check in with the patient representative just outside the Infusion Center. This lets the staff know that your child is waiting.
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Infusion Center
The Infusion Center is where patients who do not stay overnight in the hospital get chemotherapy, blood products, medicines, and other care.
The Infusion Center is where your child gets medicines and treatments the doctor orders. You can also call the Infusion Center for urgent concerns when your child’s clinic is closed.
Services we provide
In the Infusion Center, your child may get:
- Chemotherapy drugs
- Blood products
- Special cellular infusions such as:
- Donor lymphocytes
- Stem cells
- CAR-T cell therapy
- Therapeutic phlebotomy
- Vascular access
The Infusion Center team can also provide training for patient families.
Your Infusion Center team
The Infusion Center care team includes registered nurses and other care providers. Each is trained to give infusions and other treatments to your child. Be sure to ask any questions you have.
What to expect during your visit
The Infusion Center is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including holidays.
The wait time between a clinic visit and an Infusion Center visit is about 90–120 minutes. During this time, the care team prepares the medicines, blood products, or other treatments your child needs. They also do safety checks.
Delays might occur in any part of this process. If a delay happens, the care team might call your child to the Infusion Center later than planned. If the care team is more than 30 minutes late, ask the patient representative for an update.
Your child’s medicines
Please bring all medicines that your child might need during your Infusion Center visit. You might need to stay longer than you expect.
Medicines that your child takes at least 2 days in a row usually start around the same time each day. Some patients get GCSF or pegfilgrastim. If so, they get the first dose in the Infusion Center at least 24 hours after the end of chemotherapy.
After-hours care
The Infusion Center operates as an after-hours clinic on weekends and after 5 p.m. on weekdays. The on-call doctor may see your child for concerns outside regular clinic hours.
Unscheduled visits
Always call before you come to St. Jude for an unscheduled visit. If your child has urgent, acute needs after regular St. Jude hours and requires an unscheduled visit, call the Infusion Center at 901-595-2441 before going there. If you are outside the Memphis area, dial toll-free 1-866-278-5833, ext. 2441.
Call 911 if your child has a medical emergency and needs help right away.
What to do while you wait
You can enjoy activities nearby while the staff prepares your child’s treatments. Activity areas are in the Patient Care Center (PCC) north and south lobbies. You may also explore Family Commons on the 2nd floor of the PCC, visit the gift shop, eat at Kay Kafe, or get coffee from Starbucks.
If you leave the Infusion Center to visit nearby areas, please make sure the patient representative knows your cell phone number.
When your child is called
A nurse will call you to the Infusion Center when everything is ready. Ask the care team for blankets, snacks, games, movies, or other items to make your child’s visit more comfortable. You can bring your child’s favorite quiet toys and books, too.
An adult family member must stay with your child in the Infusion Center. If you need to leave for a short time, ask your nurse if someone from the Helping Hands volunteer program can help.
For your child’s safety:
- Any child younger than age 2 must stay in a crib.
- Side rails must be up on all beds and cribs if you are not close enough to touch your child.
- The Infusion Center has a playroom for patients. Please put toys in the “dirty toy bin” after use.
If the treatment area gets crowded, staff might ask you to put large items, such as wheelchairs, someplace else. Or they might limit the number of family members in the room.
Your child must be in the patient room or recliner for a nurse to connect or disconnect medicine.
Eating and drinking are allowed in the patient care areas but not at the nursing stations or playroom. If you cannot get to the Kay Kafe during meal times, ask a staff member for help.
You can ask your nurse about your child’s next appointment time before you leave the Infusion Center.
If your child might have an illness that can spread to others
If you think your child might have been exposed to an illness that could spread to other patients, such as COVID-19 or the flu, you might need an isolation visit.
Please call your primary clinic before coming to the hospital.