Anesthesiology Critical Care Medicine Fellowship

The core program is centered in the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit (CVICU) and the Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU) at UCI Health, which treats more than half of Orange County’s traumas.

ACCM fellows will be spending:

• Three to four blocks in the CVICU (12-beds)
• Three to four blocks in the SICU (24-beds)
• One to three blocks in other intensive care units (Burn ICU, Medical ICU, Neuro ICU)
• One block in echocardiography to learn TTE and TEE
• Two blocks of clinical electives

Clinical electives include infectious disease, nephrology, radiology, cardiology, pulmonology and palliative care. Electives can be tailored to meet the fellow’s needs and prepare them for their desired career path in academia or private practice.

Clinical experience is complemented with structured didactics of high-yield ICU lectures, ultrasound sessions, problem-based learning discussions, morbidity and mortality conferences, journal club, grand rounds and case discussions. Educational sessions are led by multidisciplinary faculty and cover essential core critical care topics. In addition, fellows are required to prepare and present at grand rounds and monthly presentations on topics pertinent to the curriculum.

Cardiovascular ICU (CVICU)

Training in the CVICU offers fellows the opportunity to manage post-cardiac surgical patients undergoing a variety of procedures, including bypass surgeries, valve procedures and aortic dissection repairs. Fellows will also care for patients on veno-venous and veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenators (ECMO). In the CVICU, fellows will oversee all aspects of patient care and management while working closely with the faculty intensivist, who provides 24-hour in-house coverage for these high-acuity cardiac patients.

Surgical ICU (SICU)

The SICU service is managed by ACCM fellows and trauma critical care fellows from the UC Irvine Department of Surgery. Fellows will conduct patient rounds, oversee care and work with the primary surgical service to ensure smooth ICU operations. The fellow will also evaluate all new patients, care for unstable patients and help perform bedside procedures such as arterial lines, central lines, hemodialysis catheters, bronchoscopy, thoracentesis, tube thoracostomy, tracheostomy, percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy. 

Additionally, the fellows will lead weekly multidisciplinary SICU rounds to manage bed flow and provide clinical instructions regarding the disposition of critically ill patients.

Burn ICU

The Burn ICU serves as the only comprehensive Regional Burn Center in Orange County. The burn team provides care for patients through advanced surgical techniques, innovative synthetic skin treatments and continuous expert care. 

Neuro ICU

The Neuro ICU is a highly specialized unit where critically ill patients with brain and spine disorders receive state-of-the-art intensive medical and surgical management. Neuro-intensivists provide leading edge specialized intensive care around the clock to patients with neurological and neurosurgical conditions, ranging from seizure disorders and strokes to traumatic brain injury and aneurysms.

Medical ICU (MICU)

Pulmonologists provide and manage the care of patients in the MICU. The pulmonary and critical care services deliver state-of-the-art care to patients with complex clinical diagnoses, including those with advanced respiratory disease, pneumonia and pulmonary hypertension.

Fellows have dedicated research faculty support and mentorship for scholarly activities and quality improvement projects. Fellows are strongly encouraged to submit abstracts and present cases. We provide financial support for travel to national conferences to present research.