Preparing the Patient for ICU Transfer: What Is the Anesthesiologist’s Role?

Purpose of Review This review summarizes the anesthesiologist’s role in transferring critically ill surgical patients at different phases of care. Recent Findings Early recognition of patients at high intraoperative and postoperative risk is one of the most important first steps, followed by preoperative and intraoperative stabilization measures depending on the individual needs. It mainly is the anesthesiologist’s responsibility to decide on postoperative ICU admission. The transfer of the critically ill should be planned; the ICU staff has to be informed as early as possible. Locally developed checklists should be used during the preparation of patient transport. Trained, dedicated staff should be made available in every institution. A detailed handover using dedicated institutional flowcharts should ensure patient safety upon arrival to the ICU. Summary Transfer of critically ill patients from the OR to the ICU is an interdisciplinary task with a high probability of eventual incidents. Anesthesiologists should play a key role in all phases of the procedure to improve patient outcomes.