Patna: Patna Medical College Hospital (PMCH) is preparing to expand its intensive care facilities for critically ill newborns and children, with plans for a 58-bed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and a separate 20-bed Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU).
Once the new arrangement is implemented, PMCH will have 78 beds dedicated to intensive care for seriously ill newborns and children. The hospital administration is currently making arrangements for the proposed expansion.
The move is aimed at strengthening specialised child healthcare at the state’s major government medical institution and creating additional capacity for patients requiring continuous monitoring and intensive treatment.
PMCH to Reorganise Existing NICU and PICU
PMCH currently has a 38-bed NICU and a 20-bed PICU, with both facilities located on the fifth floor.
Under the proposed arrangement, the existing facilities will be reorganised. The NICU capacity will increase from 38 to 58 beds, while the PICU will continue to have 20 beds as a separate unit.
The two facilities will cater to different age groups and medical requirements. The NICU will focus on critically ill newborns, while the PICU will provide intensive care to older children in serious condition.
This separation is expected to allow the hospital to organise critical-care services according to the specific needs of newborns and children.
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78 Beds for Critical Child Care
PMCH receives patients from Patna as well as different parts of Bihar, including newborns and children requiring specialised and intensive medical attention.
Critically ill children may require intensive care because of conditions such as severe infections, breathing difficulties, low birth weight and other serious medical complications.
With the proposed increase, the hospital will have greater capacity to admit and monitor such patients. The expansion could also help manage periods when demand for neonatal and paediatric intensive care increases.
The planned capacity will include:
- 58 NICU beds for critically ill newborns
- 20 PICU beds for seriously ill children
- 78 intensive-care beds in total
- New 500-Bed Building to Support Expansion
The hospital administration is also preparing to begin work in a new 500-bed building by the end of September.
Arrangements related to wards, equipment and other resources are being made as part of the hospital’s wider expansion plans. The additional infrastructure is expected to support the reorganisation of specialised services at PMCH.
The intensive-care expansion will form part of these broader efforts to improve the hospital’s capacity to manage patients requiring specialised treatment.
Reducing Pressure on Referrals
One of the practical challenges in critical child care is the availability of intensive-care beds when patients require immediate admission.
The proposed increase in PMCH’s NICU capacity could provide additional space for critically ill newborns, while the separate PICU will continue to cater to older children requiring intensive care.
The expanded facilities may also reduce the need to refer critically ill children to other hospitals when intensive-care beds are unavailable at PMCH.
For families travelling to Patna from other districts, additional capacity at a major government hospital could provide another option for accessing specialised paediatric critical care.
Strengthening Specialised Healthcare in Bihar
The planned expansion comes as PMCH works to reorganise and strengthen specialised healthcare services.
With the NICU being expanded from 38 to 58 beds and the PICU retaining 20 beds, the hospital is preparing a combined 78-bed intensive-care capacity for newborns and children.
The proposed changes are focused on creating dedicated critical-care capacity for different patient groups while improving the hospital’s ability to manage serious paediatric cases.
As preparations continue, the implementation of the new arrangement, along with the planned 500-bed building, will determine how quickly the expanded facilities become operational.
For Bihar, strengthening paediatric intensive care at PMCH could support the wider public healthcare system by improving access to specialised treatment for seriously ill newborns and children within the state.
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