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Having a child in a PICU is one of the most difficult things to experience.
We're meeting people on the worst day of their lives.
>> We pride ourselves on not just looking out for the patients in our unit, but
also making sure that the family has everything they need.
The family is not just on the side of the team, but
they're actually part of the team.
>> We had great care by the physicians.
It's those additional things that really made the care in the PICU outstanding.
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>> PICU stands for Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.
We have children right from infancy to age 18 years, sometimes even older.
>> We have a front desk where our head unit clerk, an HUC, sits.
And he or she will be the one that welcomes the family to the unit and
directs them to the room that their child is in.
When a family member walks into the room with the patient,
they'll generally see at least one nurse caring for their child.
Oftentimes, a resident physician, a fellow physician and
often an attending physician.
>> When you go in the room, it's either a crib or a full size bed, and then
typically a chair for the parents so that the parents can rest next to their child.
>> There's certainly a lot of equipment, a lot of machines, a lot of alarms and
noises.
Our nurses are trained to respond to all of these alarms, and
explain to you when to worry and when not to worry.
>> The nurse is always gonna be around and they'll be listening for these alarms.
If they have any questions at all, we're there to answer any questions.
>> There's usually anywhere from one to two patients for each nurse.
And there are times where the child is sicker and
requires more nurses than that one patient ratio.
And the patients are here, hooked up to a monitor, and continuously monitored
throughout their stay, which we all take a look at quite frequently.
The providers are directly on hand on the unit.
And so if there's any concerns or any issues,
the nurse can go directly to the provider.
There is always a set of eyes on the patient, and
it's easier to be able to get help when you need it.
In a typical stay in the PICU,
you'll come across a lot of different people who provide care to your child.
And so there'll be the bedside nurse, who you'll have the most contact with.
There's a charge nurse, who's in charge of the unit.
And then there are multiple providers that provide care for your child.
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>> Rounds have been twice a day in the Pediatric ICU,
usually with a large group of people, including the physicians.
So that'll be the resident physicians, fellow physicians and
attending physicians.
Oftentimes a pharmacist, the charge nurse, the bedside nurse,
the respiratory therapist.
So they'll start by going over any events that have happened
through the night before, talking about the plan for the day, and
any changes that may develop during the day, and how we're going to address those.
We'll also review vital signs for the last 24 hours,
as well as any results of any tests or lab studies that have been done.
It's always best to have the family involved in those discussions on rounds.
They know the patient better than we ever could.
>> It is very important for families to take an active role in rounding.
That's really the time to make sure that everybody's on the same page.
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>> Patients oftentimes require procedures to help aid in their recovery.
There are certain procedures that we can do in the ICU,
while there are other procedures that are a little more invasive that a patient
will need to leave the unit to go to an operating room.
>> If there are any procedures, we do ask the parents to wait in the parents
lounge because most of our procedures are sterile procedures.
And as soon as we're done, we'll go get them.
>> When a child needs care outside of the unit, depending on the severity of illness
of that child, they should be always be accompanied by ICU personnel.
The patient, depending on how sick or not, will stay on monitors for
the whole process and the nurse will be there monitoring the child.
We also do the same process when the child comes back from the OR and is tucked in.
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>> We understand that while a child is in the ICU, the family is not able to be
at the bedside for 24 hours a day in all circumstances.
So we always make sure that we have a phone number to reach the family.
And, likewise, at any time the family can call and ask for an update on the child.
>> If they do call, we ask for
a password before we can give any information to the parents.
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>> I think communication between families and
the staff of the ICU is an extremely important piece in the child's care.
We are here to provide the best care possible.
>> The thing that I think really makes Duke particularly special is the teamwork
that we use in caring for children.
>> I don't think our unit could run without great teamwork.
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>> Anything that we can do to make that day better, either for the child or for
the family, that's what keeps us going.
>> I still remember seeing some of them light up when we had
the superheroes come by.
Having them get to interact with Iron Man, they got to forget for
a moment that they were stuck in an ICU.
And for just that brief visit, they were a kid.
>> To have that child go back in the parents' arms, hale and hearty,
is extremely gratifying.
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