Pediatric Critical Care
PICU/PCICU
The Pediatric Intensive Care Unit/Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (PICU/PCICU), which opened at Golisano Children's Hospital in December 2004, is the largest intensive care services for children in western and central New York. The units serve more than 1,500 children each year.
The PICU/PCICU has nearly doubled in size, expanding from 12 to 22 patient rooms. The PCICU portion of the PICU has its own staff and new isolation rooms. It was created to foster the work of the hospital's pediatric cardiology and heart surgery teams and includes a four-bed area for children who require intensive care associated with heart problems. The importance of such a facility is evident when you consider that approximately 150 to 200 hundred children per year undergo heart surgery at Golisano Children's Hospital.
Designed to be Family-Friendly
Our doctors and facility planners visited nearly 40 pediatric ICUs throughout the country, noting the best features of each one and incorporating their findings into the plans here. We also sought input from former patients and their families. Our goal was to find ways to make the unbearable more tolerable for them.
- The units are easily accessible by a dedicated elevator between the Emergency Department, the Pediatric Trauma/Burn Intensive Care Unit and the world's only Ronald McDonald House built within a hospital.
- Most of the rooms, in excess of 300 square feet, include a phone and data line, a 32-inch television and a private bathroom.
- Light from more windows, plus floors and walls splashed with bright shades of purple, green and blue, make the area less intimidating.
- The PICU/PCICU boasts more than 50 computers, more than 10 times the number used in the previous unit.
- Stations with computers outside each room allow nurses to record medical information on-site rather than at a central location farther away.
- Wireless computers can be brought into each room so doctors can easily show parents test results such as x-rays.
- A large new family room provides more privacy for parents.
The hospital was able to fund these improvements through huge private donations from such donors as Paychex Inc. founder B. Thomas Golisano; Brighton residents Nancy and Daniel Robbins, whose daughter stayed at the hospital more than 30 years ago; and local Burger King and Friendly Restaurant owners Laurence and Dennis Kessler. Multiple fundraisers were also done to bring in single donations ranging from $10 to thousands of dollars.
Parents are Key Members of the PICU and PCICU Teams
Our goal is to involve you as fully as possible in your child's care. We hope the following information will help:
Contact Us
Pediatric Critical Care
Golisano Children's Hospital
601 Elmwood Avenue
Box 667
Rochester, NY 14642
Office: (585) 275-8138
Parent Information Line: (585) 275-2639
Fax: (585) 275-0707
Pediatric Transport Program Hotline
Referring Physicians call:
(585) 273-1500
