Join us for the 2024 Annual Meeting, presented by IARS and SOCCA in Seattle, May 17-19. The education committee has created an outstanding program with a critical-care track running concurrently throughout the meeting. The format and content of the meeting look extraordinary, with more critical-care content than we have ever had before. There will be three SOCCA-sponsored breakfasts, and all committees and subcommittees will have the opportunity to meet in person throughout the meeting. In addition, a dedicated SOCCA session will run on Sunday afternoon until about 5PM, including additional educational panels, the SOCCA awards presentations, and the SOCCA business meeting. I hope everyone stays for the entire duration of this exciting meeting.

Our committee has experienced a dynamic year, marked by significant accomplishments. In September 2023, we released one of our largest issues to commemorate Women in Medicine Month, featuring insightful contributions from several of our dedicated members. The response was exceptional, reflecting our commitment to celebrating diversity and excellence in our field.

As the new year approaches, the education committee would like to announce some new and exciting changes to the structure of the education committee, as well as our offerings for 2024.  As you will read in this month’s Interchange, the SOCCA component of the 2024 Annual Meeting in Seattle will be undergoing significant changes. We are excited that we will now be able to incorporate three days’ worth of educational offerings as a part of the combined IARS/SOCCA meeting. With this change likely to last beyond 2024, the Annual Meeting subcommittee will be continuing our work on grading and developing annual meeting content for years to come.

We would like to share with the SOCCA membership some of the changes around the annual meeting for 2024 as well as for future meetings. Unlike previous years where SOCCA had a separate meeting (a day before the IARS meeting) with a sprinkle of SOCCA sessions during the IARS meeting, the 2024 annual meeting in Seattle will be a combined IARS/SOCCA meeting. What this entails is an integration of SOCCA sessions within the IARS meeting, and the creation of a separate “critical care track” exclusively for content related to critical care medicine. This would ensure that SOCCA educational sessions will run throughout the duration of the meeting. In addition to the critical care medicine related education content throughout the IARS/SOCCA annual meeting, a dedicated half-day session of exclusive SOCCA content is also being planned after the IARS meeting ends. We believe that the SOCCA-only half-day meeting on Sunday, May 18 would allow us to present the various SOCCA awards as well as host the SOCCA business meeting and may provide an opportunity to accommodate additional education sessions. Discussions around the feasibility and logistics of this additional session are currently underway.

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in various industries has progressed rapidly in medicine, particularly in critical care. The number of articles published regarding AI in critical care medicine tripled from 2018 to 2020.¹ From the use of AI to predict the likelihood of sepsis, intensive care unit (ICU) mortality, and length of stay, many predictive models have been developed for use in the ICU setting. It is essential for the modern intensivist to understand the basics of how AI works and how to analyze studies based on AI. This article aims to fulfill these two goals and provide a foundation of knowledge that can be used to implement AI in your practice.

Utility of Predictive Analytics in Critical Care

Identifying the underlying cause of clinical deterioration in postoperative patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) can be difficult.

SOCCA WICC ended the year with a Fireside chat featuring three Intensivists in different phases of their career to share their unique journeys in academia, professional life, and career challenges. Drs. Sheela Pai Cole, Brigid Flynn, and Emily Vail joined Drs. Tabaie and Siddiqui to host the fourth and final Fireside Chat for WICC in November. Dr. Tabaie moderated the panel and asked varied questions of the speakers about mentorship, balancing academic focus and clinical demands, strategies for saying ‘no’ to opportunities when stretched, and pulling back and re-engaging with an academic career due to family obligations. The panelists spoke with candor and authenticity and shared wise pearls of experiential learning and advice on resilience. The chat provided a welcome semi-formal atmosphere for the audience to hear from successful academic intensivists and have them share workplace experiences, offering a space for support and for practicing methods to achieve career advancement.

As we wrap up this year, we would like to take this opportunity to highlight the Intensivists in Private Practice subcommittee and provide an update on some of our recent activities.

Introduction
Anesthesia Critical Care Medicine (ACCM) is the oldest ACGME board-certified subspecialty within Anesthesiology, and similar to other subspecialty fellowship training programs, our growth has outpaced the current interest in our field. This year’s match proved again to be difficult for many programs in light of the low application numbers.

It is an exciting time to pursue an anesthesiology fellowship in critical care medicine (CCM). As we emerge from COVID-19, there is a renewed energy for scientific investigations, making connections, and integrating wellness strategies to mitigate burnout. Technological advances in hemodynamic monitoring, the use of artificial intelligence or data analytics, and application of novel biomarkers are all captivating areas of investigation. Moreover, the integration of bedside point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) continues to grow and offers opportunities to be at the forefront of clinical care. If you’ve had a chance to attend recent regional or national anesthesiology or CCM meetings, you have likely noticed expanded opportunities to network and for mentorship at all stages of training. There has been a palpable energy around these connections and a desire to collaborate. It has been a real pleasure to connect with former colleagues, meet new friends and learn from a diverse collection of experts in the field.  

The SOCCA Service Chiefs’ Advisory Council (SCAC) aims to include representatives from every organization with an active anesthesiology critical care practice, specifically the one or two individuals with the broadest and most directly relevant administrative purview from each organization.

Introduction

This case report describes a young man who developed a tracheal-esophageal fistula (TEF) from endotracheal intubation with prolonged elevated cuff pressure after a traumatic fall. This case report describes the intra-operative management of profound hypoxia, shedding light on crucial pre-operative indicators that could serve as vital cues to prevent the occurrence of this potentially serious complication.

Read members-only job posts!
Visit SOCCA’s Job Board
If you would like to post a job, please email a short description and/or PDF flyer including location, contact information, and closing date to SOCCA Society Director, Vivian Abalama, IOM, CAE at vabalama@iars.org.

Interchange seeks to deliver timely, relevant, and high-quality content to SOCCA members. Contributions from members are not only welcome but essential to ensure that Interchange meets these goals. If you are interested in authoring content concerning clinical challenges, emerging research findings, member accomplishments, or anything of general interest to the membership, please reach out to vabalama@iars.org.