Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU)
Some 400 infants, children and adolescents come to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Cedars-Sinai every year. Some are recovering from major surgery of the heart, brain or spine. Others require therapy for serious illnesses, such as asthma, respiratory failure, shock, cancer or trauma. Under the leadership of Harold Amer, MD, every child and family receive state of the art medical care combined with attention to their unique psychosocial needs.
Our PICU is staffed by four full time and four part time pediatric intensivists. All eight of our pediatric intensivists are board certified, and one of them is present on site, day and night, so your child will always have access to the highest possible level of physician expertise. The PICU is accredited by California Children's Services and serves as the core for designating Cedars-Sinai Medical Center as a Pediatric Critical Care Center by the California Department of Health.
Our commitment to excellence is demonstrated by our participation in an organization known as the Virtual PICU, a consortium of dozens of PICUs from around the country. Among other activities, the Virtual PICU collects and reports back patient outcome data, allowing any participating PICU to compare itself to its peer group. These data indicate that the Cedars-Sinai PICU, despite its relatively small size of eight beds, has patient outcomes that are indistinguishable from larger children¿s hospitals. In addition, we proudly adhere in our daily practice to the precepts of patient and family centered care. In other words, when you bring your child to the Cedars-Sinai PICU, you can expect to receive world class medical care in a personalized, attentive setting.
