The ICU team!

Care for critically ill patients in the ICU involves a multidisciplinary team of physicians, nurses, therapists, pharmacists, nutritionists, social workers, and many others. Each plays a vital role in the care of ICU patients.

What does everyone do?

Physicians (MDs) coordinate the care of the ICU patient.

The intensivist (aka critical care physician) is the admitting physician in the ICU. Therefore, the intensivist is responsible for determining the proper diagnosis, appropriate treatment, and coordination of care. In academic or teaching hospitals the intensivist may work with a team of physicians in training (resident physicians). Intensivists may also consult and involve other medical and surgical specialists. For example, a nephrologists (kidney doctors) to help with severe kidney injury or a surgeon to perform a necessary procedure.

Nurses (RNs) deliver care at the bedside.

Nurses spend most of their day at the bedside with the ICU patient. They administering medications, monitoring the clinical status, identifying new signs/symptoms, and providing comfort to the patient and their family. They are typically assigned only one or two ICU patients as they requires near constant monitoring. Unfortunately, recent surges of patients due to severe COVID-19 infection have led to staffing shortages requiring nurses to take on 3-4 critically ill patients at a time.

Respiratory therapists (RTs) play a crucial role in the care of patients with respiratory failure.

Respiratory therapists evaluate patients with difficulty breathing (aka respiratory distress). This is the most common problem requiring an admission to the ICU. RTs administer breathing treatments and educate patients about respiratory medications and diseases. They set up, adjust, and troubleshoot invasive and non-invasive mechanical ventilators that provide life-sustaining support.

Physical and occupational therapists (PTs and OTs) help ICU patients maintain or regain mobility and function.

Therapists help patients with critical illness maintain or regain mobility and function during their ICU course. Patient frequently develop severe muscle weakness due to critical illness that can necessitate months of recover.

Pharmacists (PharmDs) ensure that medications are appropriate and optimized.

Pharmacists ensure that medication therapy is optimized in ICU patients. The administration of multiple infusions result in higher risk of drug interactions. Pharmacists monitor the various infusions and medications to ensure that they are appropriate. Furthermore, they identify and correct medication errors.

Please feel free to leave us a comment or inquire. We would happy to elaborate further on any of the above.

Image credit: Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash