15 May 2016

The formation of Botswana Society of Intensive and critical Care Medicine(BSICCM) has been long overdue as there is need to form consistent ways for health practitioners in caring for patients who are suffering from life-threatening illnesses.

The founder of the society, also a specialist in Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care at Bokamoso hospital,  Dr Krikor Felemenkdjian said this at the launch of BSICCM.

He said the speciality of intensive care needed to interact effectively with a number of other recognised and emerging specialties.

“Intensive Care Medicine combines physicians, nurses and allied health professionals in the coordinated and collaborative management in patients with life threatening single or multiorgan system failure. It is a continuous ( 24/7) management which includes monitoring, diagnostics, support of failing vital functions, as well as treatment of underlying diseases,” he said.

Dr Felemenkdjian, added that the development of modern science and technology had an enormous impact on intensive care medicine, diagnostics, ventilation, monitoring, nutrition drug and drug delivery systems.

He    explained  that the current status of intensive care and critical care medicine was that, it was most expensive, technologically advanced and resource-intensive area of medical care. 

“The speciality will increasingly place the intensivist in the role of patient advocate. It needs to interact effectively with a number of other recognised and emerging specialties. The nurses are key players in the Intensive Care Unit. Indeed with many diseases the nursing aspects of care play an equal or greater role in determining outcome than the medical input,” he stated.

He said BSICCM envisioned a world in which all critically ill and injured persons received care from an integrated team of dedicated trained intensivists and critical care specialists and health professionals.

Relaying the objectives of the society, he said amongst others they were aimed at promoting education programmes and the dissemination of scientific information relevant to the specialty, recommending desirable standards and guidelines for the training of  intensive and critical care practitioners and promoting multidisciplinary collaboration between intensive and critical care specialist by supporting education and professional developments of all health professional involved in Intensive and Critical Care.

The society plans to arrange at regular intervals a congress of intensive and critical care medicine, to initiate and promote education and train local healthcare professional in the field of intensive and critical care medicine. 

The attendants and aspiring members had a chance to view the drafted constitution which is planned to be amended and adopted at the next meeting, which is yet to be scheduled.

The society is open for membership for any medical practitioner involved in intensive and critical care medicine. ENDS