Information about the ICUs in the East Of England
Click here for more information on the FICM website about regional posts in the East of England.
The John Farman ICU is a tertiary adult critical care unit.
Please note our sister units at Addenbrooke’s (NCCU and PICU) specialises in neurocritical care and trauma, and paediatric ICU respectively.
The John Farman ICU is both a tertiary ICU specialising in hepatology, transplantation, vascular and HPB surgery, but also secondary care for Cambridge and the surrounding area. In 2023-24 36.9% of our patients were from tertiary specialities (transplant, liver, HPB, vascular, nephrology, oncology and haematology); 19.6% of our patients were admitted under general medicine.
We are one of seven liver transplant centres in the UK. In 2023-24 116 liver transplants were performed at Addenbrooke’s: all come to the John Farman ICU. Addenbrooke’s is the leading UK centre for multivisceral intestinal transplants and ICU is intimately involved in the care of those patients.
ICM registrars will undertake clinical work with the Rapid Response Team (RRT) which reviews acutely deteriorating adult patients in the ED and on the wards. The RRT also leads adult cardiac arrests. (Trauma and paediatric arrest calls are run by separate teams and do not involve RRT members.)
Research projects
We are involved in clinical research on the JVF-ICU and have two dedicated research nurses. Multiple consultants are PIs for research trials and resident doctors are encouraged to become research active. Professor Summers and Associate Professor Conway Morris undertake laboratory as well as clinical research.
We have recruited patients for the following RCTs in the last year: A2B (sedation in ICU); MARCH (mucoactive agents); UK-ROX (oxygen therapy). We also continue to recruit to GenOMICC (identifying genetic predisposition to specific syndromes of critical illness) and EMErALD (haematological manifestations of liver disease). In 2025 we shall recruit to the following RCTs: INIFNIT (a phase II trial into Interferon Gamma in the critically ill); SHORTER (antibiotic duration in sepsis); and GuARDS (dexamethasone in ARDS).
All members of staff, including resident doctors, are encouraged to become involved in research whilst working in the JVF and full training will be provided for those who wish to take this opportunity.
The research team can be contacted on cuh.icuresearch@nhs.net
Staffing
We have 19 consultants on the specialist register for ICM and other specialities (acute medicine, respiratory medicine, anaesthetics).
There is a seven-day consultant service with a consultant presence until at least 9pm. The on-call consultant is available 24 hours per day.
- 21 registrars and higher fellows
- 12 IMTs/ ACCS doctors/ junior fellows
- 3 foundation doctors
- 2 ACCPs
Overnight the 32 ICU-HDU beds are covered by two higher fellows/ registrars and two IMTs/ junior fellows.
RRT is covered 24 hours a day by a registrar/ higher fellow.
FICM tutor: stephen.ford6@nhs.net
Training
- Training in point of care ultrasound: we have two FICE trainers
- Opportunity to attend theatre for airway experience: will need to be done during EDT time and needs to be arranged with the anaesthetics department.
- Exposure to paediatric emergencies: No. This requires a separate placement on PICU
- Interhospital transfers: it is unusual for us to provide interhospital transfers as there is a regional dedicated critical care transfer service (ACCTS). However, we have good relations with the ACCTS and can organise shadowing placements with it.
- Opportunity to attend a Cardiac Catheterisation lab: No
- Acting up as an ICM Consultant (for Stage 3 trainees): No
- The ICU consultants run the trust vascular access service and sessions can be arranged during EDT time.
- There are weekly consultant-led in-person teaching sessions which are also broadcast on Teams.
- Resident doctors are also encouraged to attend speciality-specific teaching relevant to their speciality, the medical Grand Round, and monthly teaching sessions arranged by our colleagues at Papworth ICU.
- There are bimonthly multidisciplinary clinical governance meetings which ICM registrars are welcome to attend.
- There are bimonthly M&M meetings which resident doctors are strongly encouraged to attend.
NCCU is a 23 bed tertiary centre neurosciences and trauma intensive care medicine unit in Cambridge serving a population of 5.9 million people in the East of England.
We care for patients with traumatic brain injury, subarachnoid haemorrhage, ischemic stroke, complex multi-system trauma, and medical neurological diseases. We are closely linked with the University Department of Anaesthesia, the Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre which is co-located with NCCU, the East of England Major Trauma Centre, and clinical and research groups within Neurosciences, Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery, and many other groups in Cambridge.
We provide training to intensivists, anaesthetists, neurosurgeons, emergency medicine physicians, neurologists as well as a wide range of other specialities and regularly enjoy fellows from the UK, throughout the EU, Australia, India, Canada, and many other countries working with us for 3 – 24 months.
The Critical Care Complex is a 10 bedded unit with a mixture of level 2 and level 3 critical care beds.
Information about the Critical Care Complex on the Bedfordshire Hospitals website.
Click here for the North West Anglia unit profile from the FICM website.
Peterborough City Hospital (PCH) is a large District General Hospital (DGH) in the North of the region.
We have a 16 bedded combined intensive care and high dependency care unit. We offer a range of physiological support including vasoactive support, advanced cardiac monitoring, invasive and non-invasive ventilatory support and haemofiltration.
We admit around 700 patients to the critical care area per year. This consists of the typical DGH case mix of which around 90% are emergency cases. In addition, we admit high risk elective cases for post-operative care, most commonly following major colorectal surgery. Our hospital has acute Maxillo-facial surgery, ENT and urology on site.
Neurosurgical and trauma patients are transferred to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, cardiothoracic patients are transferred to Royal Papworth Hospital and paediatric patients usually go to Addenbrooke’s hospital. We provide initial stabilisation prior to transfer. The majority of transfers are performed by the East of England Adult Critical Care Transfer Service, while PaNDR provide a decision support and transfer service for paediatrics. Occasionally we will have to staff and perform critical care transfers, particularly if time critical, from our unit.
PCH currently has 12 consultants in Critical Care. Our consultants also work in anaesthesia, emergency medicine, pre-hospital medicine, respiratory medicine and as military consultants as well as having a single specialty ICM consultant. There are two consultants on the unit during weekday daytimes and one consultant at weekends. There is a resident consultant until 10pm in the evenings. Weeks are shared between two consultants to give continuity of care.
There is a strong interest in Ultrasound and Echocardiography as a unit with mentors for both FAMUS and FUSIC modules (Heart, Lung, Abdomen & DVT) and we support a Stage 2 Special Study Year in Echocardiography with dedicated scanning time. This includes use of the innovative butterfly scanning system and a robust governance system.
Our trainee medical staff range from FY1s to Stage 3 ICM trainees. We have 2 trainees on call for ICU on day/night shifts and a senior trainee supports ICU and theatres. We currently have trainees from the Foundation Programme, ACCS, Anaesthesia, IMT, EM and ICM. Finally, the hospital is a warm, friendly DGH and we aim to offer a good quality training experience with a truly varied case mix for those training with us.
Dr Henry Nash, Faculty Tutor
Click here for the Royal Papworth Hospital unit profile from the FICM website.
Royal Papworth ICU is a specialist cardiothoracic unit. It has a footprint of 47 beds, and admits around 2500 patients each year. The casemix includes a wide variety of elective and emergency admissions following cardiothoracic surgery, including major aortic surgery and pulmonary thromboendarterectomy. As a transplant centre, we also care for patients undergoing heart and lung transplantation, including those who require mechanical circulatory support e.g. VA-ECMO, ventricular assist devices and Impella. We also provide VV-ECMO both in-house and as part of the nationally commissioned retrieval service. We support patients following PPCI and have an in-house shock service. We also admit patients with complex cardiac and respiratory disease who are under the care of our specialist services such as Interstitial Lung Disease or the Pulmonary Vascular Disease Unit.
The ICU consultants work across ICU, anaesthesia, cardiology and respiratory medicine. Our junior medical staff range from FY2s to ICM StRs and post-CCT fellows. The rota is split into a junior tier (FY2, IMT and junior clinical fellows) and a senior tier (ICM StRs – Stage 2 and 3, plus senior clinical fellows). There is a large multidisciplinary team that includes Critical Care Scientists, and we have excellent working relationships with other specialty teams in the hospital and across the Cambridge Biomedical Campus.
The teaching programme runs sessions every day, including a journal club and point of care ultrasound, and we support trainees working towards FUSIC accreditation. There is a weekly ICU M&M and Complex Patient Meeting, and a monthly ECMO M&M, and trainees present at these meetings. We also run a follow-up clinic for patients who have been treated with VV-ECMO. There are lots of opportunities for trainees to get involved with clinical research taking place on the unit, as well as carry out audits and other projects.
We hope you enjoy your time with us at Papworth – it’s a busy unit with lots of opportunities to learn new skills and care for patients you will not see anywhere else!
Contacts:
FICM Tutor: Dr Jagan Murugachandran
Deputy FICM Tutor: Dr Rachel D’Oliveiro
