| 'Intensivists' Improve Quality of Care in the ICU
Tri-City Voice, May 6, 2009
Right Care, Right Now
A surgeon performs surgeries. A
pediatrician treats children. A
cardiologist cares for people with heart
disease. But what does an "intensivist"
do?
"Intensivists are physicians who
direct and provide medical care in a
hospital’s intensive care unit (ICU),
working with the attending physician of
record and other staff such as critical
care nurses, pharmacists, respiratory
therapists, nutritionists,
rehabilitation services, social workers,
case managers and especially spiritual
care – as well as physician
specialists," explains Dr. Carmencita
Agcaoili, Medical Director of the
Intensivist Program at Washington
Hospital.
"An intensivist has completed a
primary residency and board
certification in a specialty such as
surgery, internal medicine,
anesthesiology or pediatrics and an
additional two- to three-year fellowship
and certification in critical care
medicine," she adds.
Standing by
Launched in January 2008, the
Intensivist Program at Washington
Hospital currently has an intensivist
available in the ICU every day from 7
a.m. to 7 p.m., as well as some nights.
On-call intensivist coverage is provided
24/7, and the hospital plans to expand
the program further to include
additional intensivists on site around
the clock.
Washington Hospital’s Intensivist
Program follows the evidence-based
guidelines for care established by the
Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM).
The SCCM critical care model calls for a
multidisciplinary team approach that has
a well-documented record of:
- Improving patient survival rates and
quality care.
- Decreasing procedure complications.
- Promoting medication safety.
Prepared for action
Patients in the ICU generally have
life-threatening illnesses or conditions
such as cardiac arrest, respiratory
failure, strokes, severe trauma or
resistant infections," Dr. Agcaoili
notes. "Because of their unstable
conditions, these patients must be
monitored much more closely than
patients in regular hospital wards.
Studies have shown that having an
intensivist act as the team leader in
providing critical care definitely
improves the quality of care for these
patients."
Board certified in all three
specialties – internal medicine,
pulmonary medicine and critical care,
Dr. Agcaoili moved to Fremont in 1991
and began her long association with
Washington Hospital. "This is my
community, and it is important to me to
be actively involved in providing the
best possible care for people in our
community," she says. "I get a real
sense of fulfillment in caring for
patients who are fragile and are at a
crucial point in their lives."
In addition to Dr. Agcaoili, the
Intensivist Program includes Dr. Vineet
Kapur, a board certified physician in
both internal medicine and critical care
and Dr. Omeed Azizirad, who just
finished his critical care fellowship
training from Stanford University
Medical Center.
"We are expanding our Family
Assistance Program to help provide
families with more information and to
train the ICU staff in how to care for
the needs of family members," she adds.
"We also offer classes for doctors and
other staff in the Fundamentals of
Critical Care. The classes have been
very well received, and physicians have
embraced the idea of the
multidisciplinary ICU team. It truly is
a team effort."
The ultimate goal of the Intensivist
Program at Washington Hospital is
embodied in the SCCM’s "Right Care,
Right Now™" campaign. "The objective is
to provide the right care at
exactly the right moment in
time to achieve the best possible
patient outcome," Dr. Agcaoili explains.
"The intensivist-led model for critical
care has become the ‘gold standard.’ It
is focused on patient safety. It
improves patient outcomes. It reflects
the patient-first ethic of Washington
Hospital. It’s the right thing to do for
our patients."
Compassionate Critical Care
For more information about critical
care medicine and the role of
intensivists in the ICU, visit the SCCM
website at
www.myicucare.org.
|
