Conferences for critical care fellows begin with a critical care boot camp lecture series immediately after orientation. The goal of this series is to provide a framework for recognizing, evaluating, and managing the most common intensive care unit problems before fellows begin their clinical rotations. These are conducted in small groups by members of the faculty.
Once clinical rotations start, our standing conference series begins. Every Tuesday the fellows deliver presentations for their peers and faculty centered on cases they have managed during their rotations or journal articles they have selected for discussion. The intent of this conference is to create a dialogue on the care of the critically ill patient, discuss controversies involving the care of such patients, and highlight the literature that is relevant to the care of such patients.
The conference may focus on almost any facet of critical care, including (but not limited to) the scientific basis of critical care (e.g. physiology and pathophysiology of critical illness); measurement of illness severity and prognostication; ethics; palliative care, prevention of complications; interactions with families and other members of the multidisciplinary team.
Every Thursday, members of the critical care faculty teach our core curriculum which covers a wide array of topics in all aspects of critical care.
Critical care fellows also often attend the Department of Medicine Morbidity, Mortality and Improvement Conference on Wednesdays and Medical Grand Rounds on Fridays.