Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU)

Ochsner Children's Hospital is located on the third and fourth floors of Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans. Our Level 1 PICU offers 14 private rooms with dedicated family spaces.

Ochsner also operates a Level 2 PICU with four beds at St. Tammany Parish Hospital in Covington.

The Ochsner PICU has a highly skilled team of pediatric critical care physicians, surgeons and specialists who are board certified and trained to care for pediatric patients. Our care team also includes nurse practitioners, nurses, occupational therapists, pharmacists, physical therapists, respiratory therapists, social workers, speech therapists and other professionals who are specially trained to treat and manage conditions such as:

• Airway differences and reconstructions

• Asthma and other lung diseases

• Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a life-threatening complication of diabetes

• Brain bleeds and other head or spine injuries

• Congenital anomalies, also known as birth defects

• Drug overdoses or poisoning

• Immunological disorders

• Infections, such as pneumonia and sepsis

• Organ transplant

• Orthopedic diseases, such as severe scoliosis

• Seizures and epilepsy

• Severe viral illnesses such as COVID-19, flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)

• Trauma

A pediatric intensive care unit is just like a regular intensive care unit, except it is specifically designed for children. This level of care goes above regular emergency care and general hospital care. The Ochsner PICU provides access to advanced, lifesaving treatments such as:

• Advanced organ transplantation

• Cardiac surgery

• Complex postoperative spine management

• Continuous renal replacement therapy: A slow blood-filtering therapy similar to dialysis used after acute kidney injury or failure

• Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation: A type of life support that functions as a child’s external heart and lungs

• Inhaled nitric oxide, which is used for acute respiratory failure and pulmonary hypertension

• Intracranial pressure monitoring: Measuring pressure inside the skull that can be present for any number of reasons, including infection, inflammation, injury, surgery

• Plasmapheresis: Separating blood into plasma and cells before transfusing the cells back into the patient

• Postoperative neurosurgical care

• Ventricular assistive device: Helps or replaces the heart’s circulatory function

Eligible patients may also be referred to our clinical trials.

Staying in the PICU can be overwhelming, scary and exhausting for both children and their loved ones. That’s why Ochsner Child Life Services will be with your family every step of the way. Our Certified Child Life Specialists are trained professionals who will help you, your child and any siblings cope with their diagnosis and treatment, hospital stay and ongoing outpatient care.

PICU patients with developmental disorders and special needs may also work with the team at the Michael R. Boh Center for Child Development. Our complex team provides comprehensive support and specialty services to help children thrive.

Having a child in the pediatric intensive care unit can be a very stressful time for families. Many parents feel a need to be with their child as much as possible. We encourage parents, family and friends to visit as often as possible. Visitation may be limited for patients with certain conditions and treatments, but we always try to ensure that parents can spend as much time by their child’s bedside as they want. Your child’s nurse will provide you with a copy of detailed visiting guidelines.

Our nurses will keep parents and guardians updated on your child’s progress. Additionally, the MyOchsner app makes it easy to keep up with the latest test results, prescriptions and appointments on your phone or tablet.

Most patients do not go home immediately after recovering from their critical care needs in the PICU. Most patients are then transferred to our pediatric inpatient unit for further observation.

If the cost of a traditional hotel or short-term rental while your child is in the PICU is a burden, Ochsner Children's partners with several facilities to provide affordable, reduced-cost or free lodging for families, including:

• Brent House Hotel

• Patrick F. Taylor Hope Lodge

• Ronald McDonald House