PSCCM Medical ICU Advanced Practice Providers
Physician Assistants
Physician assistants (PA) are licensed health care providers with a master’s degree or higher who are trained to diagnose and treat illness, as well as provide preventative care to patients. PAs can work in primary care or specialties and can practice in the hospital or clinic. PAs trained to treat pediatric, adolescent, adult and elderly populations. PAs are certified by the National Commission of Certification of Physician Assistants and must be state licensed to provide care at the University of Colorado Hospital.
Nurse Practitioners
Nurse Practitioners (NPs) are registered nurses (RNs) who obtain a master’s degree in nursing (MSN) or Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree that allows them to provide a wide range of healthcare services. NPs are able to diagnose and treat medical conditions, prescribe medications, order and interpret diagnostic tests, and provide overall patient care. NPs must be board certified and state licensed to provide medical care at the University of Colorado Hospital.
Our advanced practice providers have been an integral part of the Medical Intensive Care Unit since 2018. Since then, our team has expanded to grow with the needs of our patients and division. Our team functions with a high level of autonomy, providing care to the highest acuity and most medically complex patients in the hospital in a multi-disciplinary team. In addition to diagnosing and treating ICU patients, we perform a variety of procedures, independently and with supervision. These procedures include central lines, arterial lines, chest tubes, thoracenteses, paracenteses, lumbar punctures and intubations.
In addition to providing patient care, our APPs provide education and training to a variety of learners including APP students and APP fellows. In fact, we have an APP Medical Critical Care Fellowship to train APPs to provide medical critical care.
Our team strives to foster an environment of respect, accountability, teamwork, mentorship, and intellectual curiosity that promotes our growth as individuals and as a team.
A case of fetal-induced graft-versus-host disease
Schreiber, A. R., Santos, J., McMahon, B., Buckner, T. W., Olson, C., Alberti, M. O., Guimarães-Young, A., Knoeckel, C., Broussard, L., Aubrey, M., Palmer, B. E., Weiss, E., Connors, G. R., Brunner, S., Wisell, J. A., Pacheco, T., Aisner, D. L., & Gutman, J. A. (2023). A case of fetal-induced graft-versus-host disease. New England Journal of Medicine, 389(7), 668–670. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmc2307669
Beat the Heat: Managing Heat Stroke with an External Cooling Device
Allison Proto, AG-ACNP, Instructor, Ellen Burnham, MD, Professor, Anthony Schock, PA-C, Instructor, and Jessica Viziteu, Instructor, PA-C, Department of Pulmonary & Critical Care, University of Colorado Denver. Poster presented at American Thoracic Society Conference on May 22nd, 2023 in Washington, DC. Beat the Heat: Managing Heat Stroke with an External Cooling Device