Interhospital transport to paediatric intensive care by specialised staff: experience of the South Thames combined transport service, 1998-2000.

The South London Combined Transport Service retrieved 1536 children aged 1 month to 16 years to paediatric intensive care (PIC) units usually in south London, over a 2.5 year period. Eighty one per cent of cases were for general PIC, the specialist cases being mainly cardiac and neurosurgical. The service commenced as part of a national framework for improved PIC and offers children with complex needs a safe specialist transfer. Clinician and parental satisfaction with the service appears high, although there are considerable service pressures. Intensive care beds were successfully located, helping to reduce fragmentation of PIC for this population.