critical care anesthesiology

[deleted9493]

Ok, so critical care anesthesiology is an actual sub-specialty of anesthesiology? What role do these physicians play? Do they function strictly in the icu settings...or do they provide anesthesia services for surgeries as well? I'm curious since anesthesiology interests me and I have yet to knowingly run into an anesthesiologist in an icu. Thanks.

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[Molly Maquire]

I'm a little curious about this myself. Over the summer, I spent two weeks with an anesthesiologist at a hosptial in New York. He told me that many gas docs with a fellowship in critical care alternate months (ie, one month doing straight gas, next month working in the critical care unit). I also heard that this would tend to bring down your salary (the critical care part dosen't pay as well), but it seems to me that the variety would be interesting.

Anyone else have any perspectives?

 

[lizzied2003]

One of the docs i work with is boarded in anesthesia and intensive care medicine.

He worked for several years as an anesthesiologist and then decieded he preferred his patients awake or at least somewhat awake.

He lends and interesting perspective as opposed to just an intensivist. However, the docs who have just stuck to critical care seem to have a stronger internal medicine base and able to handle patients post-ICU pretty well.

I would love to know the pay difference. In the ICU you get paid for amount of time and what procedures you do. I am not sure how it goes in anesthesia.