Critical Care Management

Catalog description

(Only for students enrolled at the Manhattan campus)This elective clinical learning experience is available to students who have completed the General Surgery rotation and takes place in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit. Students are assigned to work directly with attending physicians and/or physician assistants in conjunction with the health care team in the Surgical ICU, where they develop proficiency in the management of critically-ill surgical patients. Students become familiar with the placement, maintenance, monitoring, and removal of central venous lines, Swan-Ganz catheters, chest tubes and arterial lines. Fluid and electrolyte management, the management of ventilator patients, the interpretation of arterial blood gas measurements, and the pharmacological agents utilized in the care of the critically ill, are also practiced. Students may attend rounds, grand rounds, scheduled lectures, and conferences while assigned to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit. Students are expected to analyze and synthesize medical information, to reason independently, and to apply the concepts of medical decision-making and problem-solving to complex patient presentations. Students are required take a comprehensive upon completion of the rotation.