Critical Care and Clinical Support Services

Overview

Critical Care and Clinical Support Services (CC&CSS) is one of the largest service lines within the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital (RBWH). The service line provides comprehensive critical care and clinical support services to RBWH patients with secondary, tertiary and quaternary referral service for hospitals and medical practitioners in Queensland and northern New South Wales.

Research

Critical Care and Clinical Support Services plays a major role in research and education programs for health professionals. This is supported through joint appointments with the Universities. As the former Director of the ICU, for over 20 years Professor Lipman implemented a strong research portfolio. Professor Lipman remains a clinician in the ICU as well as being the Research Ambassador for the RBWH.

The RBWH ICU is part of the internationally recognised Burns, Trauma & Critical Care Research Centre (BTCCRC). The BTCCRC was founded in the wake of the Bali bombings of 2004 as an initiative to improve the care of the burnt and critically injured patient.

Additionally, in 2019 Professor Kevin Laupland was successfully appointed as the new Director of Research for the ICU.

Research in the centre focuses on several themes:

• Burns
• Trauma and military medicine
• Antibiotic pharmacokinetics and dosing in the critically ill
• Anaesthesia in the critically ill
• Endocrine profiles in the critically ill.

As well as unit-initiated research, the RBWH ICU is an active member of the ANZICS Clinical Trials Group and has participated in several large scale multi – centre clinical trials.

The Intensive Care Services research team coordinates multi centred trials. Other areas of research expertise include:

• Sepsis
• Sub Arachnoid Haemorrhage
• Pharmacokinetic/dynamic assessments.

Research activities are supported by a dedicated team of research coordinators who provide 24/7 on call for participant recruitment.

Research Teams

Working collaboratively with our health care partners, the ICS team has the addition of a dedicated nursing research team who also conduct and participate in nursing research.

Nursing Professorial Unit

In 2012, Professor Fiona Coyer established the Intensive Care Professorial Unit at RBWH.  There is a well-developed program of work focused on developing evidence-based approaches to nursing care and management of the mechanically ventilated critically ill patient in intensive care setting.