As prepared by Chris Nickson, here are the practice written questions from a recent CICM Second Part exam practice session at The Alfred ICU, with recommended reading from LITFL.com Critical Care Compendium and other FOAM sources:
Q1.
You are asked by an oncologist to talk to a competent patient with terminal cancer and pneumonia, who has a life expectancy of <3 months based on expert medical consensus opinion.
The issue is that the patient’s stated wish is “to live as long as possible, regardless of the quality of life”. In the event of a deterioration, he has stated that he wants chest compressions, intubation and mechanical ventilation, and any other invasive ICU therapies that will prolong his life even if there is no expectation of recovery.
- Explain how you will explore the patient’s stated wish and discuss options to form a plan of treatment. (50%)
- Describe how you will proceed if the patient does not agree with your medical treatment plan. (50%)
Q2.
Regarding pressure injuries in the ICU:
- Describe your approach to their assessment. (50%)
- Outline their prevention and management. (50%)
Q3.
Regarding a patient with severe traumatic brain injury:
- Describe how you diagnosis diabetes insipidus (40%)
- Describe the specific management of diabetes insipidus (30%)
- List 8 other important causes of polyuria (40%)
You can access an extensive set of past practice questions dating back to 2014 here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_Ta8IvVaVtc5Il7-kJwj6qKGu54OmifJGRUWCXud8dY/