The Cardiac Center at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital
Cardiac ICU
At Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital, a portion of the pediatric intensive
care unit (ICU) is dedicated solely to cardiac patients recovering from major
surgery or critical illness. Here, physicians, nurses and other healthcare
professionals can monitor them around-the-clock until all vital signs are
stable.
The physicians who practice exclusively in an ICU are called intensivists, and they play an important role in the patient’s recovery.
“Our ICU is distinctive because, unlike some hospitals, we are staffed
24 hours a day with intensivists who are fellowship-trained and
board-certified
in pediatric critical care,” says Gerald Lavandosky, MD, pediatric critical
care intensivist at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital.
“We also have a core
group of nurses who specialize in the bedside care and management of infants
and children with cardiac problems, and they maintain their competencies
in cardiovascular disease and physiology with continuing education.”
Patient- and Family-Centered Care Approach
The ICU offers the best of modern medicine and the comforts of home. It is
equipped with the latest technology for the most efficient, clinically
precise care possible, but it is also a warm, friendly place that is decorated
to appeal to a child’s sensibilities.
“Our ICU and, in fact, our whole hospital, was developed with the concept of patient- and family-centered care in mind,” says Dr. Lavandosky. “We try to make everyone feel at ease, and we encourage parents to stay at the child’s bedside and during procedures whenever possible, as this alleviates the child’s anxiety and empowers the whole family with firsthand information about care.”
Visit our Health Library for more information about intensive care, including an overview of the machines and monitoring devices commonly found in an ICU.
