Zentralblatt für Chirurgie
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The creation of a center for interdisciplinary operative intensive care through the fusion of several smaller intensive care units from various specialties is mainly driven by economic reasons. To specify some conditions for making such a fusion less expensive and to identify the impact of larger intensive care units on the quality of patients' treatment and on surgical training are the subjects of this study. ⋯ The concept of an interdisciplinary surgical ICU is obviously most practicable and reasonable if subunits with approximately twelve beds are concentrated in one centre for operative intensive care. This offers an advantage concerning the organisation and for the philosophy of treating special diseases by specialised medical teams. The size maintains the advantage of economies of scale as well the economies of scope and also promises effective logistics. For the management, an experienced intensive care specialist, either an anaesthesiologist or a surgeon should be assigned. All subject-specific advanced skills in intensive care have to be covered by an interdisciplinary continuing education.
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Knowledge on potentially pathogenic microbes including characteristics of their antibiotic resistance in septic patients as well as on the ward- and department-specific microbial spectrum can be considered essential for an efficient initiation of an adequate antimicrobial treatment, which turns out to become pivotal for patient outcome. Permanent changes in microbial patterns and antibiotic resistance can only be identified by a continuous investigation of various microbiological specimens. ⋯ ICU relocation from the pavillon-based system to a new complex clinic building was not associated with any significant alteration of the microbial spectrum on the surgical ICU. Increasing incidences of resistant Enterococcus and Gram-negative problematic microbes may indicate a general spread of multi-resistant microbes under the steady selecting pressure of a not always adequately initiated antibiotic / antimicrobial therapeutic regimen and underline the required but specific and selected microbiological screening.