Critical Care Time

It’s well known that many of the problems we encounter on a daily basis in medicine are related to ineffective communication. When caring for the critically ill, it’s vital that such lapses in communication are minimized. Join us along with Genae Christensen- a current MS-2, active critical care flight nurse and prior ECMO program coordinator as we delve into some important communication pitfalls and pearls. We will cover topics such as the authority gradient and how to navigate that, where misunderstandings may stem from, and how using structured communication systems may help you stay out of trouble. Give us a listen, let us know YOUR thoughts, share the show with your friends, and leave us a review!

On Critical Care Time we are no strangers to topics that make us uncomfortable. There may be no topic in the world of critical care more stress provoking than OB emergencies! Now… We didn’t say we are tackling this alone! Join us as we explore the wide world obstetrics in the ICU with Drs. Stephanie Levine and Adam Mora! Together we review the physiologic changes in pregnancy, unique considerations when it comes to general ICU management of the OB patient and then we delve into some OB cases where we tackle things like postpartum hemorrhage, cardiac arrest and more! Give us a listen and let us know what you think!

The critical care landscape is a dynamic one, filled with team members with all sorts of backgrounds who have various skill sets and experiences to bring to the table. In this episode of Critical Care Time we focus on the role NPs & PAs - sometimes referred to collectively as APPs - play in the ICU. To help us explore this we sat down with Gary Macy of Duke University a Critical Care NP in their Neuroscience ICU who has many years of experience working as an ICU NP. During our discussion we explored numerous topics such as the concerns regarding education, "turf wars" and what integrative models might best serve our patients. Give us a listen and let us know what you think!

The idea that movement is medicine doesn’t stop with the critically ill. On this week’s episode of Critical Care Time we sit down with Kali Dayton, a critical care NP with a passion for ICU mobility. We talk all things mobility in the critically ill: The roles of bedside nurses and clinicians, how we can implement best mobility practices with our patients, the financial and patient-care benefits of fostering a culture of movement in your ICU and what it means to be an “ICU Revolutionist” - along with so much more! If you truly care for the critically ill you cannot miss this episode!

On this week’s episode of Critical Care Time, we sit down with two brilliant early-career ECMOlogists for an “intro-plus” to VV and VA ECMO. Not only do we cover the basics, but we couldn’t help ourselves and went on some deep dives along the way that you guys will hopefully find interesting! With the help of our good friends Nick Villalobos and Kha Dinh, we review indications for ECMO, approaches to configuration and management, touch on some of the complications and… even spend some time demystifying the European unit for girth! We hope you guys will have as much fun listening to this as we did producing it. If so, leave us a review and let us know what you think!

If you thought ARDS was a long episode... get ready for a marathon! This week on Critical Care Time, Cyrus and Nick take on the unenviable task of trying to cover everything you need to know about cardiogenic shock - at least in broad strokes - in ONE episode! That's right, this is your one-stop-shop for all things cardiogenic shock. While we will have some deep dives on RV and LV failure, as well as ECMO and other mechanical circulatory support options - this episode has a little bit of it all to wet your whistle and then some! We deconstruct the epidemiology of cardiogenic shock, do a deep dive on the SCAI classes of cardiogenic shock, talk pathophysiology (duh!) and then move on to treatment considerations - both medical and mechanical - followed finally by some cases to cement all the learning. We know this is a long one so feel free to listen/watch in chunks. However you decide to enjoy it, we are certain you will walk away from it ready to conquer the next CGS case you come across! Once you've finished this epic - leave us a review and let us know how we did!

In anticipation of some exciting new content where we take deep dives into shock physiology and treatment modalities, we wanted to wet appetites, prime engines and get any of our new listeners up to speed by rebooting some of our heavy hitters from Season 1.We've already discussed how to identify shock, or how to assess a patient whom you are worried may be in shock... but what's next? Listen as Nick & Cyrus discuss the Pump, Pipe & Tank framework for determining the type of shock your patient is suffering from. In this episode we discuss the pathophysiology of the different types of shock, the tools you can use to help differentiate one type of shock from another, and scratch the surface on some initial treatment considerations.

On this end-of-year episode, Nick & Cyrus boldly go where no Critical Care Podcasters have gone before - into space! Join us, as we adventure into the great beyond with astronaut extraordinaire, Dr. Shawna Pandya - the first female Canadian commercial astronaut, who also happens to be a rural emergency medicine physician among SO many other things. We spend an hour with her discussing space physiology, medical applications of space tech, chatting about ICU corollaries, her experiences training for her upcoming mission, and exploring the challenges facing space exploration in 2025 and beyond. Hop aboard and and enjoy this exciting content and let us know what you think. This super accessible episode is loads of fun for ICU junkies and space-nerds alike so kick back, give it a listen, and as always, let us know what you think!