Purpose. To describe the structure, staffing resources, equipment, academic activities, and characteristics of pediatric population of pediatric intensive care units across the country. Material & Method. This was a prospective, descriptive, and observational survey of pediatric intensive care units from January to December 2009 across Pakistan. A questionnaire survey was emailed to director of each unit. Results. 16 PICUs were participated in this survey (100% response rate). A total of units with 155 beds were identified (1.1 bed /500,000 children). Regarding the categories, 12 (75%) were medical, 3 (19%) were pure cardiac intensive care units, and one unit (6%) was combined multidisciplinary cardiothoracic unit. 13 (81%) units were in public sector as compared to 3 (19%) were in private sector. The mean unit size was 9.7 (range 4–28) beds. Twelve (75%) units were located in three large cities. Only 3 (19%) units have trained intensivist. 37% (6/16) had nurse to patient ratio of 1？:？1-1？:？2 while others had ratios of 1？:？3–1？:？5 with all nurses specialized trained for pediatric intensive care units with bachelor degree or diploma in nursing. Only 50% had capacity for invasive monitoring. Conclusion. We found inadequacies in several aspects of PICUs in Pakistan including fewer PICUs, inadequate PICU beds, and lack of trained personal to look after critically ill pediatric population. 1. Introduction Pediatric intensive care is recognized as a mature and established discipline in developed countries [1]. The availability of pediatric intensive care is a reflection of quality of country’s pediatric medical care [2]. Pediatric intensive care services are likely responsible for nearly fivefold reduction in infant and child mortality in the United States [3]. Knowledge and understanding of current situation of PICUs is the first step for future planning, development, or expansion of PICUs in any country. Survey reports regarding the PICU structure, staffing, and characteristics are available from countries like USA [4], Spain [2], and Turkey [5]. Pediatric Critical Care Medicine (PCCM) is a relatively a new subspecialty of pediatrics in Pakistan. There is a paucity of data available regarding PICU structure, organization, and staffing from developing countries like Pakistan. The objective of this study is to describe the structure, staffing resources, equipment, academic activities, and characteristics of pediatric population of PICUs across the country. 2. Methods This was a descriptive observational survey. PICU was described as a separate physical
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