Critical Care is a relatively new speciality. Modern Critical Care originated with
the invention of positive pressure ventilation in the 1960’s. Critical Care today
is delivered in highly specialized intensive care units. Critical Care beds are
typically around 10% of the hospital bed strength but account for more than 80%
of resource utilization. Modern critical care is highly dependent on technology
and has become a essential superspeciality.
Yet training in critical care lags behind and there is a shortage of fully trained
critical care physicians or intensivists.Traditionally patients in the critical
care unit were managed by their primary physicians with a team of other specialists.
However as critical care has evolved in the last 2 decades the approach to the patients
in the ICU has changed. An Critical Care Specialist is needed to get a holistic
picture of the patient and manage complex issues like sepsis and Acute Respiratory
Distress Syndrome (ARDS). In the US studies have shown that ICUs managed by intensivists
have lower mortality than those which are run by non intensivists. Traditionally
many ICUs do not have 24 X 7 coverage for their patients. It is well documented
that presence of an intensivist 24 X 7 improves outcomes in the ICU. Unfortunately
there is a shortage of trained intensivists, which makes it difficult to ensure
the desired round the clock coverage. INTeleICU™ offers a
practical solution to this dilemma.