1. A. The hospital shall have a separate PICU with the capability to care for all significantly injured children.

2. B. The PICU shall:

   1. (1) Have appropriately trained registered nurse staff to care for the critically injured child to include:

      1. (a) Brain injury;
      2. (b) Spinal cord injury;
      3. (c) Solid organ injury;
      4. (d) Chest injury;
      5. (e) Complex musculoskeletal injury;
      6. (f) Burns;
      7. (g) Eye injury;
      8. (h) Hand and upper extremity injury; and
      9. (i) Lower extremity injury;
   2. (2) Be staffed at a level to ensure appropriate nurse-patient ratios as determined by written nursing standards;

   3. (3) Have a written plan to:

      1. (a) Triage children from the PICU to accommodate acute admissions; or
      2. (b) Provide alternative critical care beds with appropriately trained pediatric critical care registered nurses;
   4. (4) Have available the pediatric resuscitation equipment and medications;
   5. (5) Have the equipment and capability for continuous invasive monitoring of the critically injured child;
   6. (6) Have extracorporeal membrane oxygenation capability;
   7. (7) Have capability for all renal replacement therapies; and
   8. (8) Have support services with immediate access to clinical diagnostic services and stat lab.

Authority: Education Article, §13-509, Annotated Code of Maryland

Effective date: September 7, 1998 (25:18 Md. R. 1439)

Regulation .01B amended effective July 1, 2002 (29:12 Md. R. 933)

Regulation .03E amended effective June 4, 2007 (34:11 Md. R. 972)

Regulation .06C amended effective July 1, 2002 (29:12 Md. R. 933)

Regulation .16A amended effective July 1, 2002 (29:12 Md. R. 933)

Regulation .16 amended effective June 4, 2007 (34:11 Md. R. 972)

Regulation .18A amended effective July 1, 2002 (29:12 Md. R. 933)

Regulations .01—.20 repealed and new regulations .01 — .22 adopted effective July 24, 2023 (50:14 Md. R. 594)

Regulation .02B amended effective July 21, 2025 (52:14 Md. R. 714)