With a team of in-house Pediatric Intensivists available 24/7 at the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). The unit is supported by full-time Pediatric sub-specialist consultants, advanced ventilation modalities, and advanced organ support systems. Further, the PICU at Rainbow Children’s Hospital delivers the best outcomes for critically ill children and children with complex problems thus making it one of the best children's hospital for critical care in their pediatric intensive care unit. Rainbow Children’s Hospital has one of the best PICU (pediatric intensive care units) in the metropolitan cities of Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, and many more facilities coming up soon across major cities in India.

Rainbow Children’s Hospital has one of the best pediatric intensive care units (PICU) in India, with its state-of-the-art childcare facilities available in cities of Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, and many more facilities coming up soon across major cities in India.

PICU is a section of the hospital providing the highest level of medical care to sick children. It is different from the general medical floors as it allows continuous monitoring of breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure. The PICU also has a medical staff that can provide intensive therapies like breathing machines or ventilators that require close medical supervision.

Any child who is seriously ill and required medical intensive care that could not be performed on the main medical floors is admitted to the PICU. The most common conditions include:

Asthma
Heart conditions
Serious infections
Complications of diabetes
Serious injury

The duration of your child’s stay in the PICU will depend on their condition. For some, it is just one day. For others, it can extend to several weeks or even months. To get an idea of the duration, you can talk to the doctor or nurses.

There are several skilled professionals working in the PICU to take care of your child. But as a parent, it can be a little overwhelming to leave your child in the care of someone you don’t know. If you feel the same, you can talk to the healthcare professionals regarding any concerns you might be having.

One of the most important people in the PICU is the nurses. They are trained in taking care of the sickest children. They will be involved in minute-to-minute care of the children. It is important for the hospital to maintain a high nurse to patient ratio, meaning that each nurse should care for fewer patients. This way, they will be able to take better care of the children.

Several physicians might take care of your child. However, the attending physician is the one in charge. The team contains residents doctors who have completed their training and the PICU fellows who are currently training. Apart from them, there will be several other specialists like neurosurgeons and cardiologists, depending on the needs of the children. Respiratory therapists help in setting up and monitoring ventilators and other breathing equipment. In some cases, physical therapists, nutritionists, and occupational therapists might come into play as well.

During the stay, you can expect the following equipment in the PICU:

IVs - Almost every kid admitted to the PICU has an intravenous catheter to transfer medications and fluids into the body. It is usually inserted in the arms or hands, but in some cases in legs, feet, or even scalp. It is a thin tube that is inserted into the vein using a small needle. Once the IV is in the vein, the needle is taken out and the soft plastic tube is left.

In some cases, if a large amount of medicines and fluids are needed to be delivered, larger IVs can be used. Known as central lines, these IVs are inserted into the central and larger veins of the neck, chest or groin.

Medications - There are certain medications that can have a serious side effect. To administer such medications, the child must be in the PICU where they can be monitored. Instead of a few hours, some medications are needed to be given continuously. These medicines like morphine, dopamine, and epinephrine are used for helping with blood pressure, heart function, and pain relief.

Monitors - Almost all the kids in the PICU have monitors attached to them. These use chest leads to secure the device to the body. Chest leads are small stickers that are connected to the wires. They are used for counting the breathing and heart rate of a child. Some kids will be connected to a pulse oximetry machine that is used for checking the levels of blood oxygen. This device is attached to the toes or fingers. If the blood pressure of your kid is not monitored directly using an arterial catheter, they will have a blood pressure cuff attached to their leg or arm.

Tests - Doctors will order blood and urine tests to get more information on your child’s health. This also includes imaging tests like an X-ray, CT scan, MRI, and an ultrasound. In some cases, the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) surrounding the spinal cord and the brain is also tested.

Ventilators - Kids admitted to the PICU usually need some help to breathe. This includes using tubing in the nose or a face mask to get that extra oxygen. In a serious case, a child will be connected to a breathing machine called a ventilator. This can be done in two ways. Either through a tracheostomy where a plastic tube will be directly inserted into the windpipe through the skin or through an endotracheal tube where the tube will be inserted through the nose or mouth into the windpipe. For different situations, there are different ventilators. But the basic purpose for all is the same - help the child breathe. When the breathing tube is in the windpipe, the child will be administered pain relief and sedative medicines.