National paediatric critical care report (PICANet)
The Paediatric Intensive Care Audit Network (PICANet) has published a report summarising paediatric critical care activity within designated Level 3 paediatric intensive care units (PICU) and Specialist Paediatric Critical Care Transport Services in the UK and Republic of Ireland between 2021 and 2023.
The long-standing trend of higher mortality for female admissions was no longer seen in 2022 and 2023
This report found that there were 18,498 admissions to PICU in 2023, averaging around 50 per day, with respiratory admissions being the most common primary diagnosis (making up just under 30% of all PICU admissions in 2023). Other key messages include:
- The long-standing trend of higher mortality for female admissions was no longer seen in 2022 and 2023
- Mortality for children in PICU was 3.7% of 2023 admissions (an improvement from 3.9% in 2022)
- Children living in highest areas of deprivation were more likely to be admitted to a PICU
- The percentage of admissions from Asian and Black ethnicities increased to 18.3% in 2023 from 17.1% in 2022
- Completeness of data on ethnic groups improved between 2021 and 2023, from 88.3% to 90.4%.
This report also includes three recommendations for improvement, namely to:
- Investigate reasons for higher PICU admission rates in children from ethnic minority groups and the most deprived areas
- Investigate reasons for the differences in mortality between males and females and how this has changed over time, and
- Monitor changes over time in reasons for admission to PICU and the impact on paediatric critical care services following the planned roll-out of the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccination programme.
Read the full report: You can see all key findings and read the report in full by clicking on the link below.
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