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Intensive care: paediatric

Published on 07 February 2024

Paediatric Intensive Care Units (PICU) manage children and young people whose conditions are life-threatening.

Units in the Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow and the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh provide care as a joint service.

What is paediatric intensive care?

This service provides care to patients who need constant close monitoring from a specialist clinical team. This can include ventilation equipment to restore and maintain normal body functions.

The two PICUs are commissioned as a single service to provide care to the paediatric population. There are 21 beds in Glasgow and 10 beds in Edinburgh.

Both units work closely with ScotSTAR, the specialist transport service that includes paediatrics, as well as supporting other national specialist children’s services.