<p>​World PICU Awareness Week is a time to honour and recognise the incredible evolution in the field of paediatric intensive care, with AKUH at the forefront of this evolution. It is also a moment to reaffirm our commitment to advancing care through compassion, collaboration, and continuous innovation. This year, at the Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH), we proudly highlight how technology, innovation, and family-centred care are transforming lives within AKUH&#39;s Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU).
</p><p><strong>Interprofessional Excellence: The Heart of Our PICU</strong></p><p>At the AKUH PICU, excellence is driven by a cohesive interprofessional team. </p><p>When a child is critically ill, treatment goes far beyond machines and medication – it involves a coordinated human effort. At AKUH&#39;s PICU, every child&#39;s care is supported by a multidisciplinary, interprofessional team that works seamlessly together, ensuring that each aspect of healing — physical, emotional, and psychological — is addressed with equal importance.
</p><p><strong>Our dedicated team includes:</strong></p><ul style="list-style-type: disc;"><li><strong>Paediatric Intensivists</strong>, who lead with evidence-based and patient-tailored critical care.</li><li><strong>PICU Nurses</strong>, who provide round-the-clock bedside vigilance and empathetic care.</li><li><strong>Pharmacists</strong>, who ensure medication safety and precision in complex therapeutic regimens.</li><li><strong>Physiotherapists</strong>, who support early mobilisation and respiratory therapies to minimise ICU-acquired complications.</li><li><strong>Dietitians</strong>, who customise nutritional strategies to accelerate healing.</li><li><strong>Patient Care Assistants and Healthcare Assistants</strong>, who uphold patient dignity and comfort during every aspect of daily care.</li><li><strong>Unit Receptionists</strong>, who coordinate essential communication between families and clinical teams, ensuring timely updates and support.</li></ul><p>Each member of the team brings not just their skill, but also their empathy — contributing to a care environment where families feel seen, heard, and supported throughout their child&#39;s critical care journey.</p><p>Together, this diverse team provides excellent, family-centred care. </p><p><strong>Innovation That Enhances Human Care</strong></p><p>At AKUH, every tool is chosen with care, aimed at enhancing our ability to respond quickly, reduce uncertainty, and deliver safer, more personalised treatment.</p><p>Innovation in our PICU is not just about cutting-edge machines—it&#39;s about smart, context-driven solutions. We have thoughtfully integrated technology in ways that enhance—not replace—human care.</p><ul style="list-style-type: disc;"><li><strong>Real-time bedside monitoring systems</strong> ensure that clinical changes are detected early.</li><li><strong>Simulation-based training programmes</strong> continuously prepare our teams for high-stakes emergencies.</li><li><strong>Early mobilisation</strong> helps children regain strength faster and prevents long-term disabilities.</li><li><strong>Sedation scoring tools</strong> guide precise and safe management of analgesia and sedation.</li><li><strong>Family-centred rounds</strong> involve parents in real-time clinical discussions, promoting transparency and shared decision-making.</li></ul><p>Focused, ethical, and effective use of these tools empowers the PICU nurses and doctors to act swiftly, collaboratively, and confidently in emergencies, while still maintaining sensitive and open communication with families. At AKUH, technology is a bridge, not a barrier—it serves to amplify the human connection and enhance the safety and quality of our care.
</p><p><strong>Revolutionising Bedside Monitoring</strong></p><p>Among the innovations introduced at the AKUH PICU is the Etiometry T3 system. The T3 platform offers continuous, high-fidelity monitoring of changes in blood flow, heart function, and breathing patterns, using smart technology with predictive analytics to spot early warning signs that a patient&#39;s condition may be getting worse—often before they are visible through traditional monitoring.</p><ul style="list-style-type: disc;"><li>Real-time alerts are instantly accessible to intensivists and bedside nurses.</li><li>The system supports timely decision-making, enhancing early interventions that can be life-saving.</li><li>AKUH PICU is proud to be among the few centres in Asia utilising such advanced predictive technology at the bedside.</li></ul><p>For families, this means fewer surprises, faster responses, and a greater sense of reassurance during a deeply stressful time. Through T3, AKUH is moving towards offering our patients an unprecedented level of safety and personalised intervention.
</p><p><strong>Compassion: The Unwavering Core of Our Care</strong></p><p>While technology elevates our capabilities, compassion remains the heart of everything we do. At AKUH, critically ill children and their families deserve care that honours both medical excellence and human dignity.
</p><p>We actively include families in discussions, value their insights, and engage them as equal partners in the child&#39;s journey. We provide <strong>psychological support</strong> through some of the most challenging and emotional moments, whether it is navigating complex clinical decisions or supporting families through end-of-life care.</p><p>Our <strong>nursing teams</strong> are champions of parental empowerment:</p><ul style="list-style-type: disc;"><li>Encouraging early bonding, even when children are ventilated or critically ill.</li><li>Supporting families in understanding complex monitoring and medical interventions.</li><li>Facilitating compassionate communication during periods of uncertainty.</li></ul><p>These are the moments that parents remember — when a nurse patiently explains the meaning behind each beep of a monitor, turning fear into understanding, or when a doctor takes time to reassure them despite the urgency around. It&#39;s here that science meets sensitivity, and families find strength and reassurance, not only in treatment but also in how it is delivered.
</p><p><strong>A Vision for the Future</strong></p><p>This PICU Awareness Week, we reaffirm a vision not just of progress, but of purpose: to ensure that innovation never outpaces empathy, and that every advancement in critical care translates into better experiences for children and their families. We reaffirm a future: where <strong>technology empowers compassion, </strong>where technology strengthens human connections, where every child and every family is a true partner in critical care, and where innovation serves equity, ensuring that the very best in paediatric critical care is accessible and personalised.</p><p>At the AKUH Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), we are not just providing care—we are <strong>leading a transformation</strong>. Through <strong>Technology, Innovation, and Family-Centred Care</strong>, AKUH is shaping a world where critically ill children not only survive but thrive — and where families find strength, hope, and healing through every step of their journey.</p><p>Together, we move forward—stronger, smarter, and always more compassionate.​
</p><p><strong>Author:</strong> <a href="/pakistan/patientservices/pages/profiles.aspx?ProfileID=234&amp;Name=Naveed%20ur%20Rehman&amp;page=admin"><em>Dr Naveed ur Rehman</em></a>, Assistant Professor, Paediatric Critical Care, The Aga Khan University Hospital.​
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