Department of Intensive Care Medicine
Department of Intensive Care Medicine

The Department of Intensive Care Medicine of SYSMH, also known as the Comprehensive ICU, was established in 1999, making it one of the earlier such departments founded in Guangdong Province. It was officially registered as a first-level clinical specialty by the Guangdong Provincial Health Department in 2010 and designated as a Guangdong Provincial Clinical Key Specialty in 2011. The department serves as a master's degree-granting site in Critical Care Medicine at Sun Yat-sen University and was among the first to qualify as a National Specialist Physician Training Base for Critical Care Medicine, having since enrolled trainees for specialist physician training in the field. At the Main Hospital Campus, the department operates Critical Care Medicine Unit I, while at the Southern Campus, it operates Critical Care Medicine Unit II, which is further subdivided into the subspecialty Surgical ICU and the subspecialty Medical ICU.
Currently, the department employs 33 physicians and 108 nurses, with 36 patient beds and 36 multifunctional monitors. It is equipped with 35 high-end ventilators, along with a series of advanced resuscitation devices such as laminar airflow purification systems, ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation), fiberoptic bronchoscopes, non-invasive ventilation machines, hemodynamic monitoring devices, and bedside blood purification machines.
The primary function of the Department of Intensive Care Medicine is to perform monitoring and resuscitation techniques for various critical conditions, providing robust support for critically ill patients across all clinical departments. The department continues to evolve, implementing various organ support and monitoring technologies, including ECMO, ventilator support strategies for ARDS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome), fluid resuscitation and immune modulation for sepsis, critical care circulatory support such as intra-aortic balloon counterpulsation, and blood purification therapies for critical illnesses.
The current the head of the Department is He Zhijie, M.D., Chief Physician, and Master's Supervisor. He serves as a National Committee Member of the Critical Care Medicine Physicians Branch of the Chinese Medical Doctor Association, Vice Chair of the Critical Care Medicine Branch of the Guangdong Provincial Medical Association, and Vice President of the Critical Care Rehabilitation Branch of the Guangdong Rehabilitation Society, where he also heads the Critical Respiratory Rehabilitation Group. He has participated in numerous international academic exchanges in countries such as the United States, Australia, France, South Korea, and across Europe. He has led multiple research projects funded by the Guangdong Natural Science Foundation, science and technology funds, and international collaborations. His research achievements include "Basic and Clinical Research on Artificial Cardiac Pacemakers," which received the Second Prize of the Guangdong Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award; "Research on New Therapies for Spinal Cord Injury Repair and the Application of Intraoperative Electrophysiological Monitoring," also awarded the Second Prize of the Guangdong Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award; and "Basic and Clinical Research on Shock," which received the Third Prize of the Guangdong Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award. He Qing, Associate Chief Physician, serves as the Director of the Surgical ICU (subspecialty) in the Critical Care Medicine Department at the Southern Campus, while Wang Jiwen, Associate Chief Physician, serves as the Director of the Medical ICU (subspecialty) in the Critical Care Medicine Department at the Southern Campus.
The department plans to further expand its scale and capabilities, extending its medical services beyond Guangdong Province and increasing its influence across South China and nationwide.

More

Featured Medical Technology

The Department of Intensive Care Medicine of SYSMH was among the earliest established in Guangdong Province. It was officially registered as a first-level clinical specialty by the Guangdong Provincial Health Department in 2010 and designated as a Guangdong Provincial Clinical Key Specialty in 2011. The department serves as a doctoral degree-granting site in Critical Care Medicine at Sun Yat-sen University and was among the first to be accredited as both a National Specialist Physician Training Base and a National Standardized Residency Training Base for Critical Care Medicine.
The primary function of the department is to implement monitoring and resuscitation techniques for various critical conditions. It provides comprehensive organ support and monitoring technologies, including ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation), ventilator support strategies for ARDS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome), fluid resuscitation and immunomodulation for sepsis, critical care circulatory support such as intra-aortic balloon counterpulsation, blood purification therapies for critically ill patients, and early intensive care rehabilitation. These capabilities offer robust support for the management of critically ill patients across all clinical departments.
Particularly in the field of mechanical ventilation, through research on lung-protective ventilation strategies for ARDS, invasive-noninvasive ventilation strategies, and mechanical ventilation techniques for pulmonary fibrosis—combined with new technologies such as critical care ultrasound, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and esophageal pressure monitoring—the department has developed specialized and precise mechanical ventilation techniques for three key conditions: ARDS, acute exacerbations of COPD, and interstitial pneumonia.
Regarding multidisciplinary consultations, critically ill and complex cases represent the most suitable patient populations for such collaborative approaches. The department engages in extensive horizontal collaboration with various specialties within the hospital, leveraging the strengths of each discipline to facilitate interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary joint treatment and research. This has enabled the establishment of comprehensive management protocols for complex and critical illnesses with distinct disease characteristics, creating an effective model for the treatment of critically ill patients.

More

Scientific Research Results

The Department of Intensive Care Medicine is a Guangdong Provincial Clinical Key Specialty, a doctoral degree-granting site in Critical Care Medicine at Sun Yat-sen University, and among the first to be accredited as both a National Specialist Physician Training Base and a National Standardized Residency Training Base for Critical Care Medicine. It has already enrolled trainees for specialist physician training in the field.
While maintaining high-quality clinical services, the Department of Critical Care Medicine places strong emphasis on scientific research. In recent years, it has secured two projects from the National Natural Science Foundation of China and over ten provincial/ministerial-level projects, published more than 20 SCI-indexed papers, and received two Second Prizes and one Third Prize of the Guangdong Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award for its research achievements. Additionally, it has published a monograph titled Critical Care Medicine (People's Medical Publishing House). Particularly in the area of basic and clinical research on severe sepsis, the department has conducted a series of studies, including in vitro cell and animal experiments on sepsis, and has obtained multiple provincial-level research grants and one research award. Furthermore, in collaboration with several related specialties, it is conducting research on immunomodulatory therapy for sepsis patients with immune deficiencies.
The Department attaches great importance to teaching. It established the first Critical Care Medicine Teaching and Research Section in the province, with He Zhijie serving as its director. By continuously strengthening teaching efforts, the department consistently supplies specialized talent to the field of critical care medicine. Over the past decade, the department has also enhanced its continuing education programs, organizing more than ten specialized training series in areas such as mechanical ventilation, critical care rehabilitation, and critical care hemodynamics, which have received widespread praise from participants both within and outside Guangdong Province.

More