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Critical Care

We provide Critical Care in the Critical Care Unit (CCU) at Community Memorial Hospital – Ventura, and in our Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Community Memorial Hospital – Ojai. These state-of-the-art units provide specialized care for patients requiring intensive monitoring at all hours, including patients recovering from cardiothoracic surgery, neurosurgery, and patients experiencing serious respiratory illness or multi-organ system failure. Conditions treated by our Critical Care team include:

  • Post-surgical care
  • Sepsis or severe infections
  • Multi-organ system failure
  • Respiratory illness
  • Respiratory failure requiring ventilation
  • Kidney or liver failure

Critical Care at Community Memorial Hospital – Ventura

The Critical Care Unit in Ventura features 28 private rooms, each equipped with the latest in patient monitoring and life-sustaining technology. Rooms are outfitted with negative pressure capabilities, and we have two dedicated isolation rooms with anti-rooms for highly infectious patients.

All of the patient rooms offer private bathrooms, bedside toileting options, patient lifts, and electronic communication technology so patients are always connected to their team of caregivers.

Most patients stay in Critical Care for a few days until their condition improves. Once stable, they are usually transferred to our telemetry or medical/surgical floor. Visitation guidelines for Critical Care procedures and policies vary and may depend on the condition of your loved one or friend. Please consult our visitation policy for more information.

Intensive Care at Community Memorial Hospital – Ojai

The ICU in Ojai has four rooms. The unique, small size of our ICU here allows for concentrated attention and expert medical care for patients who need a high level of care but prefer to be close to home in the Ojai Valley. The care of our ICU patients in Ojai is managed by an expert team of intensivists and specially-trained nursing staff. When a higher or lower level of care is needed, our teams will work together to seamlessly transfer care from one hospital to another.

Our Team

Our team is staffed by a multi-disciplinary group of healthcare providers and support staff who collaborate to ensure that patients receive the best care possible and have everything necessary to recover quickly, including:

Critical Care Specialists: Our critical care specialists are board-certified internal medicine physicians with additional fellowship training and board certification in Critical Care Medicine. They oversee the diagnosis and treatment of patients in Critical Care.

Pulmonologists: Our pulmonologists are board-certified in internal medicine with additional fellowship training and board certification in Pulmonology. They oversee and manage the diagnosis and care of patients in Critical Care, particularly those with severe respiratory illness, respiratory complications or failure, and those requiring ventilation.

Registered Nurses: The experienced nurses in Critical Care provide the majority of the daily, hands-on care to our patients. They monitor and evaluate patients on an on-going basis and provide regular updates to physicians and other members of the care team.

Respiratory Therapists: Our respiratory therapists help treat patients with respiratory illness, failure, or other respiratory complications. They are specialists at administering oxygen and vaporized medications, and operating ventilators.

Physical & Occupational Therapists: Our rehabilitation specialists provide movement therapy to our patients as they recover from a serious illness or injury. Physical therapists assist with improving strength and flexibility, while occupational therapists teach patients how to safely perform activities of daily living.

Social Services: Our social services team assists with discharge planning, sourcing medical equipment and supplies for the home, managing health insurance and finance issues, and accessing other resources in preparation for discharge and recovery.

Registered Dieticians: Our registered dieticians provide guidance to the Critical Care Team care team regarding dietary issues. They may also consult with patients prior to discharge. For patients who are interested in nutrition advice to optimize healing, Community Memorial offers Nutrition Coaching.

Spiritual Care: Spiritual Care is a key component of the healing environment in Critical Care and throughout our hospitals. Our Spiritual Care team is comprised of reverends, priests, rabbis, ministers, and nondenominational chaplains who are available to pray with our patient and family members, provide spiritual reading material, and much more. If you or your loved one would like a visit from a member of Spiritual Care, please ask your nurse.