The Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU) cares for patients with a variety of surgical issues. Fellows gain substantial experience managing intra-abdominal sepsis, liver transplantation and hepatobiliary surgery; kidney transplantation, pancreas transplantation, oral and maxillofacial surgery as well as a variety of other surgical procedures. Fellows learn to care for a diverse surgical population because although our institution has a separate Trauma and Burn ICU, trauma patients are frequently cared for in the SICU as well.
In addition to caring for a diverse surgical population, this unit is an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) referral center for severe respiratory failure. Therefore, while rotating in this unit, fellows also gain experience managing severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and other forms of respiratory failure. This includes ventilator management strategies and cannulation for ECMO support when indicated.
All continuous renal replacement therapy is managed by the ICU team, which gives our trainees expertise in the initiation and management of dialysis for renal dysfunction. In addition to the liver transplantation population mentioned previously, our fellows gain further experience managing hepatic dysfunction and coagulopathy, as the SICU uses a molecular absorbents recirculation system for treatment of severe liver failure in the SICU.
