Cincinnati Children’s

Cardiac Intensive Care Unit | Cincinnati Children's

In the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, a 36‑bed multidisciplinary team delivers round‑the‑clock, state‑of‑the‑art care for patients from newborns to adults. The unit integrates physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists, social workers, dietitians, pharmacists, and Child Life specialists, emphasizing family‑centered treatment as a core component of patient recovery. Key performance metrics underscore the CICU’s leadership: it maintains some of the nation’s lowest bloodstream and catheter‑associated urinary tract infection rates, and it spearheads a 20‑center cardiac arrest prevention collaborative that has achieved a 30% reduction in arrest rates both locally and across participating units. The unit also earned the prestigious Beacon designation from the American Association of Critical Care Nurses, recognizing outstanding nursing outcomes and a healthy work environment. Cincinnati Children’s highlights family involvement, describing parents as the child’s main source of strength, and showcases concrete results such as the infection‑rate benchmarks and the collaborative’s measurable impact. The Beacon award and consistent top‑ranking by U.S. News & World Report for over 15 years further validate the CICU’s commitment to excellence. These achievements position the CICU as a national benchmark for pediatric cardiac care, attracting top talent, influencing best‑practice standards, and ultimately improving survival and quality of life for complex cardiac patients across the country.