Development of Medical Criteria for Mobilizing a Pediatric Patient in the PICU

Physical activity in acute and critical care has been recognized as a successful method of improving patient outcomes. Challenges lie, however, in mobilizing pediatric critically ill patients and establishing consensus among health care providers about the safety and feasibility. The challenge of mobilizing pediatric patients is balancing developmental level, functional ability, and level of acuity; therefore, a mobility guideline was developed for use in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). The unique population and challenges in the PICU led to the development of a PICU-specific set of medical criteria within a PICU mobility guideline. The process of determining the medical criteria, using evidence, is discussed along with stratification of the criteria into phases of mobility. We review the criteria and the implications for mobility guidelines and patient outcomes.