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Division of Pediatric Critical Care

The Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine is a dedicated team of Board-certified pediatric intensivists, certified nurse practitioners, skilled critical care nurses, respiratory therapists, and other health practitioners working to provide multi-disciplinary care for critically ill children. We are committed to excellence in education by teaching and training the brightest and most talented future physicians, and to advancing medical knowledge through basic, translational science and clinical research.

Our 19-bed Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) provides around-the-clock care for patients with life-threatening medical and surgical conditions, for those who are critically injured, and for those who suffer from acute and chronic conditions and illnesses.  Our unit admits approximately 1000 patients per year from the mid-Atlantic region. In addition, our team provides sedation services for inpatients in conjunction with our Pediatric Anesthesia colleagues.


Clinical Activities

For more information on our PICU or our clinical activities, including information on Maryland ExpressCare for Kids, please visit our website at the University of Maryland Children's Hospital.

Patients are transported to our unit via Maryland ExpressCare for Kids, a critical-care transport service providing inter-hospital transport of critically ill patients by ground and by air.

Specialized services include 24 hour in house PICU attending coverage, and 24 hour consultation availability by an array of pediatric subspecialists including cardiology, pulmonology, neurology, gastroenterology, hematology/ oncology, metabolic and genetic specialists, endocrinology, pediatric surgery, otolaryngology, orthopedics, anesthesia and cardiothoracic surgery. Specialized therapies available to our patients include extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), renal replacement therapy and all modes of mechanical ventilation.


Educational Activities

The division offers a fellowship program in pediatric critical care medicine, supports the pediatrics residency program, and supports the training of bedside and advanced-practice nurses.

The division offers a unique fellowship in Pediatric Critical Care Global Health based in Malawi. Fellows will work as consultants in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Blantyre, Malawi while participating as an investigator in a clinical trial.  

The division also offers an observation program, designed for health care professionals and trainees from other institutions to advance their knowledge and experience through observation of rounds, lectures, conferences, and clinical interactions.



Research Activities

Advancing knowledge through basic science and clinical research is of utmost importance to our division.  The University Of Maryland School Of Medicine is among the fastest growing research enterprises in the country with more than $400 million dollars in total grants and contracts annually.  Faculty in our division are actively collaborating with researchers in the Institute for Genome Sciences, , , and the .

Collaboration is also ongoing with students and faculty at the School of Nursing and School of Pharmacy at University of Maryland, Baltimore as well as at University of Maryland College Park. Faculty and trainees in our division are encouraged to collaborate with researchers across the breadth of campus as well as with researchers at other institutions in the area.

Faculty

  • Jason Custer, MD 
    Division Head; Professor; Medical Director, PICU; Director of Patient Safety
  • Siddhartha Dante, MD
    Assistant Professor; Director, Pediatric Critical Care Transport; Director, Pediatric Critical Care Telehealth
  • Allan Doctor, MD
    Professor; Director, Center for Blood Oxygen Transport and Hemostasis
  • Benedicto Fernandes, MD
    Assistant Professor, Division of Pediatric Critical Care
  • Yudy A. Fonseca, MD
    Assistant Director; Associate Director, Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship Program
  • Cortney Foster, DO 
    Associate Professor; Director, Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship Program
  • E. Ana Lia Graciano, MD
    Professor; Medical Director, Critical Care Research
  • Adrian J. Holloway, MD 
    Assistant Professor, Director, Pediatric Critical Care Global Health 
  • Stacie Peddy, MD
    Associate Professor; Medical Director, PCICU; Director, Pediatric ECMO Program
  • Jennifer Schuette, MD, MS
    Associate Professor
  • Liliana Simon, MD, IBCLC
    Clinical Assistant Professor; Pediatric Critical Care and Breastfeeding Medicine

Division Head

Jason Custer, MD

Jason W. Custer, MD



Contact Us



110 S. Paca St. 8th Floor Ste. 820
Baltimore, MD 21201-1595
410-328-6957 (Office)
410-328-0680 (Fax)
410-328-6453 (PICU)
University of Maryland Children's Hospital