CHRISTUS St. Michael Health System - LiveWell

Greg White, M.D., intensivist "As a community health care leader, we consider it our responsibility to make sure those we serve have access to this kind of intensive care. The success and growth of the critical care program are testaments to our dedication to extend the healing ministry of Jesus Christ." — Mike Finley, M.D., regional chief medical officer for CHRISTUS St. Michael Health System Critically Ill Intensive Care for the Following our tradition of providing advanced medical services for our patients, CHRISTUS St. Michael Health System has enhanced our four specialized critical care units with a dedicated intensivist team. Physicians known as intensivists practice exclusively in the intensive care units (ICUs), directing care for patients with critical illnesses and complex needs. "Dealing with a severe illness can be an emotional experience for patients and their loved ones," says Bret Craytor, M.D., a pulmonary critical care intensivist with CHRISTUS St. Michael. "Our surgical, medical, cardiovascular and cardiac ICUs are designed specifically to help those who could benefit from more intense, hands-on care. We provide both physical and emotional support by being there for patients and families when their needs are greatest." COOPERATIVE, FOCUSED INTERVENTION To help identify patients who will benefit from intensive care, Dr. Craytor, Greg White, M.D., and their colleagues have developed close relationships with the emergency room and other hospital teams. Patients may be admitted to the hospital through the emergency room and then transferred to the ICU, referred to the ICU from outlying hospitals in the area because they need more advanced care, or transferred from other parts of the system if they are not responding well to standard treatment. The kind of medical care patients receive in the ICU depends on their medical needs. The care ranges from close blood sugar monitoring to managing ketoacidosis (a complication in which the body cannot use the sugar in blood for fuel), while others need life support such as ventilators to help them breathe. "Our ICU is also certified in advanced cardiac life support," Dr. Craytor says. "When patients come to the hospital experiencing cardiac arrest, we have the option of cooling them down and inducing a medical coma. This process can dramatically increase patients' chances of surviving and reduce damage to the brain after a heart attack.. That's the kind of care this department was created to provide." WHEN EMOTIONS RUN HIGH For Dr. Craytor, Dr. White and their colleagues, working with the sickest patients is a calling. Their jobs are complicated, but that doesn't keep them from creating genuine human connections with their patients and the patients' families. "We provide medical support, but a lot of what we do is also about offering emotional support during a tough time," Dr. Craytor says. "In life-threatening illness, patients have urgent need for diagnosis, treatment and intervention. Their survival depends on this. With our intensivist program, we provide that chance for our critical patients." Learn more about our intensivist program by watching Dr. Craytor's story at christusstmichael.org/intensiviststory. Bret Craytor, M.D., intensivist 3 LiveWell | Winter 2016

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