Kyle Kirsch
Research Mentor: Erica Andrist
Mentor Department: Pediatrics, Medicine
Author(s): Kyle Kirsch, Erica Andrist, Jacqueline Meadow, Kaitlyn Arbour, Kelly Beharry
Session: Session 3 (11:00 AM – 11:50 AM)
Presentation Type: Poster 88
Abstract
Advancements in medical care have led to a decrease in the mortality rate for pediatric patients with “chronic critical illness†(CCI). While this growing population has significant healthcare needs, leading to frequent ICU admissions and prolonged stays, their medical and psychosocial needs are often not fully met. Additionally, pediatric CCI remains poorly characterized, due in part to the lack of a standardized definition and the heterogeneity of the population, which includes children with varying ages, diagnoses, functional capabilities, and illness trajectories. This high utilization creates competition for resources while providers face ethical dilemmas involving beneficence and non-maleficence, developmental and attachment disruption, discharge versus death decisions, and equity in care influenced by home support resources, creating moral distress for patients, families, and providers. Our study seeks to better define CCI while characterizing its epidemiology and healthcare utilization at C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital. We identified 6,588 patients with 7,429 admissions to the NICU or PICU between Jan 2013-Dec 2023 and 8.5% (n=559) of these patients met our definition of CCI. The results of this study will provide a framework to understand the lives of children and families affected by CCI. Additionally, because ICU models are not suited for long-term care, these data can inform reformed care practices while also providing foundational information for decision making at the individual and institutional level.
