[In Process Citation]

Intensive care of the surgical patient is an integral part of the treatment and continuing medical education mission of surgery. Working on the intensive care unit educates surgeons with regard to emergency treatment, pathophysiological thinking, and judging the risks of surgical procedures. The importance of preoperative workup and postoperative care and the diagnosis of postoperative complications are experienced personally and should thus encourage the surgeon to operate nontraumatically and increase their motivation for continuous holistic patient care. This does not mean erecting boundaries or competing with anesthesiologists in surgical intensive care. Rather, the joint aims of surgeons and anesthesiologists should be reinforced. The advantages of close cooperation for successful completion of the mission of patient care and medical education for younger colleagues need to be emphasized. Ideal cooperation between anesthesiologists and surgeons calls for commitment, competence, trust, and personal accord on the part of the persons involved. Under these circumstances, even in hospitals with only one interdisciplinary intensive care unit there should be no problems regarding who takes on official leadership.