I'll be starting a JI in a medical ICU in a couple weeks. Any recommendations on what to carry as a pocket reference. I already have "The ICU Book." Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

one book that is great but not necessarily pocket sized is

critical care study guide text and review by criner and d'alonzo

Take a look at the Mass General Critical Care Handbook. It's terrific - clear and thorough, more accessible (IMHO) than The ICU Book, *and* it fits into your coat pocket, so you can flip to a necessary page at any time. I love it.

Tarascon's Critical Care Pocketbook is another good one.

Tarascon's Critical Care Pocketbook is another good one.

I like this book a lot.

I also like this one:

http://a1204.g.akamai.net/7/1204/1401/05042511011/images.barnesandnoble.com/images/9550000/9551229.jpg

I'll be starting a JI in a medical ICU in a couple weeks. Any recommendations on what to carry as a pocket reference. I already have "The ICU Book." Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

Something to read early on which you probably already have a copy of is the Pulm/critical care chapters in the Washington manual. It's very short (50 pages or so) and will really help clarify issues related to vent and pressor management. The NEJM has a great review on placement and management of central lines which is also very helpful (see McGee DC, Gould MK. Related
Preventing complications of central venous catheterization.
N Engl J Med. 2003 Mar 20;348(12):1123-33).

By the way, if you're being pimped in the ICU during rounds and have no clue, saying either "autoPEEP" or "V/Q mismatch" can be a saver. I'd venture to say >50% of vent related questions can be correctly answered using those two responses.

Enjoy what will be a very exciting and fun rotation,
PB