Bigelow Building, 6rd Floor
To arrange for transport of a critical ill infant or child, call 617-724-HELP, and you will be connected directly to a critical care physician. For all other calls related to Pediatric Critical Care, please call 617-724-4350. The fax number for Pediatric Critical Care is 617-724-4391.
Critical Care at a World-Renowned Academic Medical Center
The MassGeneral Hospital for Children Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) is a fourteen-bed, multidisciplinary unit, which has distinguished itself by providing high quality care for critically ill infants, children, and adolescents. Our patients present with a wide variety of life-threatening issues, such as severe infections, respiratory diseases, trauma, and post-operative care of various complex surgeries.
Our Mission
Our mission is to provide state-of-the-art critical care medicine by bringing together the most sophisticated technology and scientific advancement in an environment sensitive to the multicultural patients and families we serve. Excellent communication with the family and primary care pediatrician is seen as a critical success factor in optimizing outcomes.
A Coordinated Multi-Disciplinary Approach
The MGHfC PICU provides monitoring and life-sustaining treatment for critically ill patients suffering from a wide range of illnesses. We provide advanced cardiovascular, respiratory, and neurological support, both invasive and non-invasive, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). The PICU attendings are all trained in pediatric critical care medicine, some with further training in anesthesiology, pulmonology, and emergency medicine. In order to optimize the care of both the child and family, the pediatric intensivists, in collaboration with the critical care nurses, orchestrate a multidisciplinary team that includes medical and surgical physicians, as well as:
- Respiratory therapists
- Pediatric pharmacists
- Physical therapists
- Occupational therapists
- Child life specialists
- Social workers
- Chaplains
- Nutritionists
- Imaging and laboratory personnel
We have a complete range of pediatric consultant services, including:
- Pulmonology
- Endocrinology
- Cardiology and cardiac surgery
- Infectious diseases
- Nephrology
- Trauma surgery
The PICU fellowship program provides graduate level patient supervision twenty-four hours a day
At MassGeneral Hospital for Children, we strive to provide an open and welcoming environment. We believe that no one knows a child as well as parents do and therefore parents, along with primary care providers, become partners in the child’s care. The parents have an active voice in all treatment plans.
A Program of Constant Improvement
The full panoply of social services, child life specialists, and a child protection team etc. are available to all PICU patients as needed.. Our procedures and formulary are continually assessed through tools such as the Collaborative Practice Meeting, where novel therapies are evaluated and PICU performance is monitored. Quality assurance is provided through case studies and other forums. Scheduled educational activities are held in the PICU and, by arrangement, in the community.
Service for Sedation and Pain-Free Procedures
The procedural sedation program provides sedation for procedures in a specially dedicated room. The purpose is to provide a venue for children to have procedures done in a less intimidating environment than the operating room. We created new training and treatment paradigms for physicians and nurses. Common procedures include lumbar punctures and bone marrow biopsies, bronchoscopies, liver biopsies, and other invasive procedures, as required.
The Telemedicine Program
The telemedicine program, which is the first of its kind in New England, provides consultation in pediatric acute/urgent care to our affiliates in the Boston area, including North Shore Medical Center and Newton-Wellesley Hospital, as well as other hospitals as far away as Puerto Rico.
Research
The division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine is performing laboratory and clinical research. This research includes:
- Molecular and cellular mechanisms of ventilator-induced lung injury
- Micro- and nanoparticulate drug delivery systems
- Mechanisms of inflammation, apoptosis and neuroprotection in brain injury
- Predictors of severity and outcome in severe, acute and chronic pulmonary diseases
- Applications of innovative technology in the PICU environment
