Education & Training

The primary teaching environment will be the Trauma Surgical Intensive Care Unit (TICU) where fellows will spend 5 months. The TICU is directed by a trauma surgeon with the Surgical Critical Care fellowship and cares for both trauma and acute care surgery patients. The Anesthesia Surgical ICU (SICU) cares for surgical patients (vascular, transplant, general) and is directed by a critical care, fellowship-trained anesthesiologist. The Cardiothoracic ICU (CTICU) cares for cardiac surgical patients and is also directed by a critical care anesthesiologist. Fellows will spend two months in the SICU and two months in the CTICU. The Neurosurgical ICU (NSU) has a neurologist/neurosurgeon director. Fellows will spend two months in the NSU caring for diverse neurosurgical and neurotrauma patients. Fellows will spend two months in the trauma service where they will be expected to manage the evaluation, resuscitation, surgical/non-surgical care, and daily rounds of the team during which time they will be directly supervised by trauma surgeon faculty.

In the TICU, SICU, and CTICU rotations (five, two, and two months, respectively) the surgical critical care fellow will attend weekly combined didactics with the three units. This is the core teaching conference for both Surgical Critical Care and Anesthesia Critical Care Fellowships. Faculty from both programs are present and take an active role. Fellows from both programs will participate. Core program requirements for both programs have significant overlap and are beneficial to both specialties. This interactive conference also models interdepartmental collegiality which is critical in the profession. The NSU (two months) conduct its own didactic experience with a combination of neurosurgery and neurology faculty plus neurosurgery residents.

While on the trauma service (two months), the surgical critical care fellow will participate in the Division's Friday morning academic conference (content: Trauma, Critical Care, and Acute Care Surgery). The fellow will take an active role in teaching and/or leading case discussions. Faculty are present for each conference.

The TICU, the trauma service, and the Department of Surgery have PI and/or M&M conferences which the fellow will attend. They will present as applicable/requested.