Publication

Abstract : Background: Pediatric intensive care units (PICU) have brought about dramatic increase in the survival of critically ill children. The aim of pediatric intensive care is not just to save lives but also to maximise the quality of those lives. Evaluation of the outcome of an intensive care unit is necessary as a measure of quality improvement in patient care. Methods: A retrospective observational study was done in a PICU of a teaching hospital between February 2017 to August 2018. Records of all admissions, transfer outs, discharges and deaths were collected along with age, sex, diagnosis, length of stay, and outcome. Results: Mean age of the 601 patients admitted over a period of nineteen months was 4 years. 36% patients were between 1-5 year and 32% were infants. Major indication for admission to the PICU was respiratory (30%) followed by neurological illnesses (25%) and infections (22%). Increased length of stay (LOS) (>5 days) was seen in respiratory, neurological diseases and infections. A significant relation (p value <0.05) was found between outcome and patients admitted with sepsis and the group classified as others. Patients admitted with involvement of nephrology system had a significant relation with LOS (p value <0.05). The mortality rate was 2%. Conclusion: The outcome analysis of our newly setup PICU is comparable with other studies in the Indian subcontinent. Active surveillance or audit of PICU admissions help capture lapses in management and bring a better outcome with available resources.