Facilities and Clinics

Our Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition inpatient service consults on and manages an average of 20 to 30 inpatients daily, including approximately 800 direct GI admissions to inpatient care.  In addition, the Center for Digestive Health & Nutrition cares for more than 9,000 outpatient visits per year.

The clinical activities of our program are located at Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, Orlando Health Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies, and the outpatient clinics at Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital Center for Digestive Health and Nutrition.

The Center cares for many inpatient and outpatient cases, and is staffed by nine attendings, three advanced practice nurse practitioners, seven pediatric nurses, three dieticians, case worker, social worker and child psychology, supporting the outpatient clinic. In addition, there are several nurses covering the endoscopy suite, and a full team of OTs, SLT, and LCSW in the feeding program. The fellow will participate in all aspects of inpatient and outpatient care.

The research activities are based out of our outpatient clinic at Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children Center for Digestive Health and Nutrition and the Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital Pediatric GI Specialty Diagnostic Laboratory, with Senior Researchers and Research Technicians available to guide.

Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children

Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children is the largest pediatric teaching hospital in Central Florida. Orlando Health Arnold Palmer is currently the area's only stand-alone children's hospital and only Level 1 Pediatric Trauma Center. The hospital has a 44-bed PICU and step-down unit as well as a 33-bed Pediatric Emergency Department and Trauma Center and a 30-bed Pediatric Intensive Care Cardiac unit.

Most of the GI procedures take place in the endoscopy suite or in the operation rooms located at Orlando Health Arnold Palmer. We perform more than 3,000 procedures per year, including upper gastrointestinal endoscopies, colonoscopies and flexible sigmoidoscopies, and other gastrointestinal procedures, such as percutaneous endoscopic gastric tube placement, liver biopsy, motility studies (esophageal, antral-duodenal, and colonic), breath hydrogen analyses, esophageal pH and impedance studies, and video capsule endoscopy. Each fellow, on average, will have completed more than 300 procedures before graduation. Fellows will learn to perform and interpret not only the full range of diagnostic procedures, but will acquire skills in therapeutic procedures, including polypectomy, esophageal variceal endosclerosis and ligation, pneumatic and non-pneumatic dilatation of strictures, removal of GI tract foreign bodies and percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tube and gastro-jejunal feeding tube placement.

Orlando Health Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies

Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children is connected by a two-story sky bridge to Orlando Health Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies, an extraordinary facility designed to serve the unique healthcare needs of women and babies in a caring, family-centered environment. It houses a state-of the-art 142-bed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, one of the largest in the United States. It is a large regional children's tertiary referral center. Fellows are involved in the management of complex neonatal cases.

Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital Center for Digestive Health and Nutrition

The Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children Center for Digestive Health and Nutrition is the main location for our outpatient clinic services and is located just three blocks away from Orlando Health Arnold Palmer. There are seven satellite outpatient clinic locations located throughout Central Florida, reaching as far as the Atlantic coast in Melbourne, FL. The GI Division currently includes nine board-certified pediatric GI physicians; three nurse practitioners; six RNs, three dietitians and two research coordinators. Our faculty holds appointments through the Florida State University College of Medicine, the University of South Florida College of Medicine, and the University of Central Florida College of Medicine.

All members of the center are actively involved in clinical research, monthly journal clubs, weekly patient reviews, weekly didactic lectures and QI projects. We have experienced research coordinators to support our ongoing multi-center and single-center clinical research projects. There is strong expertise in the division to provide an academically stimulating and nurturing environment for fellows in training.

We have uniquely developed specialty clinics and centers that provide multi-disciplinary approach to patient care and a diverse learning opportunity for our fellows.

• Aerodigestive Center
• Feeding Difficulties Center
• Celiac Disease Center
• Motility Center
• Eosinophilic Esophagitis and Allergic GI Disorders
• Hepatology Clinic
• Cystic Fibrosis Clinic
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease Program
• Pediatric Liver and Intestinal Transplant Program
• Short Bowel Syndrome and Intestinal Rehabilitation
• Healthy Lifestyles Program
• Spina Bifida Program
• GI/Bone/Nutrition Clinic
• Neonatal Follow up Clinic for high nutritional risk

Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital Pediatric GI Specialty Diagnostic Lab

Our lab has a research and development group where the GI faculty and Fellows work with top notch scientists to help novel research and develop new assays. The Clinical Scientists perform diagnostic tests not commonly available in clinical diagnostic laboratories, and have samples sent from around the country. Testing is performed to the highest standards in our state-certified laboratory with results available in as little as 24-48 hours. Our fellows work closely with the staff to learn how to perform these diagnostic tests. Additionally, each fellow has an opportunity to consult with lab staff to develop and perform their own independent laboratory and translational research projects. Some of these have resulted in a new tests that then can be offered by the laboratory.

The Research laboratory is equipped with core equipment including Real time PCR, Next Gen sequencing, ELISA, and studies in fecal microbiome, duodenal overgrowth, Disaccharidase Deficiencies, Pancreatic Insufficiency, Eosinophilic Esophagitis, Functional Abdominal Pain Disorders, are some of the areas of focus. The Clinical laboratory currently offers the following gastrointestinal testing:

• Disaccharidase Assay Test, performed on small bowel mucosal biopsy obtained at endoscopy
• Pancreatic Enzyme Analysis Test, performed on pancreatic fluid obtained at endoscopy after pancreatic stimulation with CCK or secretin
• Airway Pepsin measurement from tracheal washing, bronchial lavage fluid or middle fluid to rule out reflux and aspiration
• Eosinophilic Derived Neurotoxin, performed on samples obtained from esophageal brushing
• Small bowel microbial overgrowth from duodenal brushings