ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The Federal Joint Committee has established requirements for centers for intensive care medicine which, in cooperation with other clinics, are to take on special tasks for intensive care medicine in a region. High demands are placed on these centers, which it may not be possible to meet without restructuring the existing intensive care structures. OBJECTIVE: In this study, an organizational model for a center for intensive care medicine based on broad interdisciplinary and interprofessional cooperation is presented for discussion. METHODS AND RESULTS: The organizational model contains proposals for integration of the centers for intensive care medicine into the clinic structure, the management team, the staff composition, the areas of clinical activity, and the further tasks of research, teaching, and education and training. CONCLUSION: Establishment of the centers for intensive care medicine provides new and forward-looking impetus for the further development of intensive care medicine in Germany. However, for the new organizational model to be implemented effectively, the necessary restructuring measures must be adequately refinanced and supported by hospital management and medical faculties. In addition, a sustained willingness for interdisciplinary and interprofessional cooperation is required on the part of all those involved, and employees in this model must be offered attractive long-term positions in intensive care medicine.