For Healthcare Professionals
The General Intensive Care Unit at UHPT is comprised of two adjoining Intensive Care Units (ICU): Penrose and Pencarrow. It has a broad casemix reflecting the wide range of medical and surgical specialties provided by the hospital.
Clinical Workload
UHPT provides secondary services for a local population of over 400,000 and a range of tertiary services for the Peninsula population of approximately 1.5 million including neurosurgery, plastic surgery, pancreatic and hepatobiliary surgery, renal transplantation and cardio-thoracic surgery. The unit admits in excess of 1200 patients per annum with over 80% of admissions being unplanned. Post cardiac surgery care is provided in the separate Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (C-ICU Torrington), although a number of patients requiring prolonged intensive care support following cardiac surgery are transferred to Penrose ward.
Clinical Research
The unit has a well established Research Team actively participating in commercial and non commercial trials.
The ICU Research Team has four nurses who all have duel roles clinically and within research embedding research within the unit. The team work closely with Doctors, Advanced Critical Care Practitioners, Physiotherapists , Laboratory Technicians, Pharmacists, Rehabilitation specialists and Nurse specialists to provide high quality research to patients and families. There are currently 12 active trials with the plan to continue to expand.
We are currently recruiting to the following portfolio trials:
- MARCH- mucoactive treatments for secretion management
- SOS-medications for traumatic brain injury
- Genomicc- Geno types in sepsis
- Escape- Trimodulin in community acquired pneumonia
- MAST- anti seizure management in prophylactic and duration medication for traumatic brain injury
- Vitdalize- Vitamin D for critically unwell patients
- Remap-Cap- Steroids for community acquired pneumonia
- UK ROX- Oxygen therapy for ventilated patients
- Mec-Rox- Substudy of UK ROX, looking at surfactant in ventilated patients
- Irehab- Rehabilitation study
- Oxon- Flu data collection
- Signet- Organ donation study
Previous trials conducted on the unit include:
- TRACMAN (The unit was the second highest recruiting unit to this trial)
- OSCAR trial (High frequency Oscillation in ARDS)
- PROWESS-SHOCK (Activated protein-C for septic shock)
- PROMISE (Early goal directed therapy in sepsis)
- EUROTHERM (therapeutic hypothermia in traumatic brain injury)
- RESCUE-ICP (decompressive craniectomy in brain injury)
There is an active audit programme and the unit was a first wave member of the ICNARC case mix programme. The unit previously contributed to the cost block programme.
Training in Intensive Care
The unit is recognised by the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine for training at all levels of intensive care medicine. Training for Intensive Care residents and trainees include:
• Journal club every Tuesday morning
• Protected trainee teaching on Thursday afternoon with a focus on core knowledge for postgraduate examinations
• Clinical meetings every Friday lunchtime
• Access to a dedicated simulation suite on the unit
We aim to ensure that all ICU novices undertake a Basic Intensive Care Medicine Course, run in-house. The unit is actively involved in a number of other courses including Focused Echocardiography in Life Support (FEEL), ALERT, ILS and a care of the Critically Ill Patient in the General Ward course.
Medical Students
Phase 2 and 3 (year 3,4,5) medical students of the Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry undertake clinical attachments within the Critical Care Unit. Students participate in ward rounds and receive dedicated teaching sessions from the consultant staff.
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