Home Intensive Care Unit (HICU®): Pediatric Care at Home
Helping medically complex children leave the ICU
and come home—safely and with confidence.
A Structured, Team-Based Path from ICU to Home
BAYADA’s Home Intensive Care Unit (HICU®) is a 12-week, home-based step-down program for infants and children with high-acuity medical needs, offering a reliable, value-aligned transition from NICU/PICU to home.
Supports safe, timely, and successful care transitions for medically complex infants and children
Addresses a key gap when a child is medically ready, but home support is uncertain and readmission risk is high
Deploys dedicated pediatric HICU® certified nurses to care for the most fragile children after discharge
Shortens NICU/PICU stays, reduces avoidable readmissions, and frees critical care capacity
Provides hands-on complex care in the home while coaching and empowering families
Ensures continuity of care through close collaboration with hospital teams and smooth transition to ongoing BAYADA Pediatrics nursing
Exceptional care for a variety of needs and diagnoses
From micro-preemies to children with congenital anomalies, we help children and families live and thrive at home, including those who are:
Technology-dependent (tracheostomy, ventilator, gastrostomy tube, complex airway)
Experiencing delayed discharge due to home-care readiness or staffing challenges
At higher risk for readmissions or emergency utilization without structured support
Returning home to families who need intensive oversight and predictable nursing coverage
Measurable outcomes that reduce costs, readmissions, and length of stay
HICU® was designed to support value-based care goals—addressing pressure on length of stay, limited ICU capacity, and the high cost of avoidable readmissions—while keeping children safe at home and thriving.
In multiple cases, children supported through HICU® avoided rehospitalization entirely and transitioned smoothly into long-term pediatric nursing— delivering measurable value across utilization, cost, and quality benchmarks without compromising safety or family experience.
Proven HICU® outcomes:
0%
Reduction in hospital readmission rate
$0
Average cost savings per patient per year
0.00%
Reliability rate
Jesse’s Story: Advanced Pediatric Home Care That Changes What’s Possible
Jesse’s journey shows what happens when high-acuity care at home is truly tailored—not just shifted—from the hospital. Jesse’s home care team built his plan around his specific risks, ventilator and trach needs, family capacity, and home environment, then adjusted coverage and goals as he stabilized. That kind of skilled nursing and tight clinical oversight is exactly what John Lovelace, Former President, UPMC for You, speaks to in this video:
"When care is customized to the child and coordinated across the team, outcomes improve, hospital days drop, and total costs come down."
Real children. Real HICU® success stories
Every HICU® referral represents a child whose hospital stay was measured in months—not days—and a family preparing to manage complex care at home.
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How to refer a patient or start a conversation
To refer or learn more, call Melissa Klinger at 610-343-1000, email [email protected], or fill out the form below.
