Shrinners Hospital in Philadelphia

3551 North Broad Street 
Philadelphia, PA 19140
Telephone 215-430-4000 
Clinic 215-430-4073 
Fax 215-430-4126 

Chairman, Board of Governors: Franklin D. Caltagirone
Administrator: Sharon J. Rajnic
Chief of Staff: Randal R. Betz, M.D., FACS
Medical staff at the Philadelphia Shriners Hospital

45 beds (orthopaedic) 
13 beds (SCI) 

Opened June 24, 1926 
New facility opened Feb. 2, 1998

Affiliated Temples

• Acca, Richmond, Virginia
• Ali Ghan, Cumberland, Maryland 
• Almas, Washington, D.C. 
• Beni Kedem (also Lexington), Charleston, West Virginia 
• Boumi, Baltimore, Maryland 
• Crescent, Trenton, New Jersey 
• Irem, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania 
• Ismailia (also Erie, Springfield), Buffalo, New York 
• Jaffa (also Erie ), Altoona, Pennsylvania 
• Kena, Fairfax, Virginia 
• Khedive (also Greenville), Chesapeake, Virginia 
• Kismet, New Hyde Park, New York 
• Lu Lu, Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania 
• Mecca, New York, New York 
• Nur, Wilmington, Delaware 
• Osiris (also Erie), Wheeling, West Virginia 
• Rajah, Reading, Pennsylvania 
• Salaam, Livingston, New Jersey 
• Syria (also Erie), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 
• Zembo, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 
• Zem Zem (also Erie), Erie, Pennsylvania 
• Ziyara (also Springfield), Utica, New York 
  

The Shriners Hospital in Philadelphia is a 59-bed pediatric orthopaedic hospital providing a complete range of specialized medical and rehabilitation services at no charge to children with orthopaedic problems or spinal cord injuries. The hospital is one of 22 Shriners Hospitals throughout North America. In addition to treating children with routine and complex orthopaedic problems, the Philadelphia Hospital provides a comprehensive and individualized rehabilitation program for children and adolescents who have received a traumatic injury to their spine. 

Treatment Specialties 

An interdisciplinary approach is used in patient care programs to ensure comprehensive care for each patient. The staff includes orthopaedists, pediatricians, other medical specialists, nurses, therapists, social workers, etc. 

The Philadelphia Hospital is equipped and staffed to provide care for virtually all pediatric orthopaedic problems, with the exception of acute trauma. The hospital, however, has developed a special expertise in the following areas: 

• Spinal cord injuries 
• Cerebral palsy 
• Scoliosis 
• Myoelectric research program with young children
• Limb deficiencies (including myoelectric camp for preschoolers) 
• Spina bifida 
• Hand disorders 
• Leg-length discrepancies 

Some of the most common orthopaedic problems treated at Shriners Hospitals include:

• Skeletal growth abnormalities 
• Metabolic bone disease 
• Clubfoot 
• Hip disorders 
• Brittle bone disease (osteogenesis imperfecta)
• Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis 

Services provided by the Philadelphia Hospital include: 

• Orthopaedic surgery 
• Orthotics and prosthetics 
• Rehabilitation (inpatient and outpatient) 
• Nursing (inpatient, outpatient & OR/RR) 
• Clinic (outpatient) 
• Radiology 
• Social services 
• Occupational, physical and recreational therapies
• Adaptive aquatics 
• Wheelchair sports and fitness 

Teaching Affiliations 

Shriners Hospitals are proud of their role in medical education. Over the past 20 years, more than 8,000 physicians have received residency education or post-graduate fellowship training in the orthopaedic and burn hospitals. By maintaining a strong link with major teaching facilities, the Philadelphia Hospital fosters an academic environment committed to providing high quality orthopaedic care to all patients. The Philadelphia Hospital maintains teaching affiliations with the following: 

• Temple University 
• Einstein University 
• Hahnemann University 
• Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine 
• 22 other hospitals, universities and allied health education programs 

Family-Centered Care

Shriners Hospitals recognize that the family plays a vital role in the child's ability to overcome an illness or injury. Using a team-centered approach together with a family-centered philosophy, the Philadelphia Hospital encourages and supports the family's participation in all aspects of the child's care and recovery. By promoting the importance of the family in the care of the child, the Philadelphia Hospital can accomplish its purpose more effectively. The hospital also provides comprehensive physical and psychosocial services to patients and their families to help them learn to accept and cope with the special challenges they face. Overnight accommodations for parents are also provided. To encourage sibling visitation, there is no age restriction.

Research

Shriners Hospitals are leaders in pediatric orthopaedic and burn research. Shriners Hospitals have been involved in clinical research in pediatric orthopaedics since the early 1920s. In the early 1960s, Shriners Hospitals aggressively entered the structured basic research field in an effort to advance medical knowledge about the causes and treatments of the more than 300 diseases affecting bones, joints and supporting tissues. These advances are shared widely among the 22 Shriners Hospitals and with other hospitals throughout the world. 

The research department of the Philadelphia Hospital is dedicated to developing and assessing treatment options for children and adolescents with neuromuscular disabilities, including spinal cord injury and cerebral palsy. Currently, the primary focus is on the application of functional electrical stimulation (FES) to provide upper extremity and lower extremity function or improved mobility in these populations. In addition to grant-funded research investigations, studies are routinely performed by the orthopaedic staff, residents and clinicians, making the Philadelphia Hospital a well-known resource for clinical research in pediatric orthopaedics. 

Eligibility Requirements

Referrals to the Philadelphia Hospital 

Anyone can refer a child to the Philadelphia Hospital. Call 215-430-4000 to make a free appointment or to request an application form. 

Referring physicians may contact Chief of Staff Randal R. Betz, M.D., FACS, at (215) 430-4000 to refer patients to the Philadelphia Hospital. 

Application forms are also available by calling any Shrine Temple or Shrine Club, or one of the toll-free information numbers: in the United States, 1-800-237-5055; or in Canada, 1-800-361-7256. 

Emergency care is not available at the orthopaedic hospitals. 

For emergency burn admissions to one of the Shriners Hospitals that treat burns, referring physicians should telephone the chief of staff at the Shriners Hospital in Boston, Cincinnati, Galveston, or Sacramento and indicate that the patient needs emergency care. Non-emergency admissions of burn patients for reconstructive or plastic surgery can be arranged in the same manner as orthopaedic admissions at the nearest Shriners Hospital for Children.

Shriners Hospitals specializing in burn care 

Supporting Shriners Hospitals 

To make a donation to Shriners Hospitals for Children, you can send a check, made payable to "Shriners Hospitals for Children," to any of the 22 Shriners Hospitals (see addresses of individual hospitals) or to the Office of Development, International Shrine Headquarters, 2900 Rocky Point Dr., Tampa, FL 33607-1460. To make a donation in memory of or in honor of another individual, just include a note indicating who the donation is in honor of or in memory of, and the name and address of the individual who should receive the acknowledgement.