2. There are 22 General Hospitals in Israel There are 18 General ICU’s The percentage of ICU beds out of total beds is 1.2%-1.5% All ICU’s are “closed units”

3. Critical Care Medicine is a formal sub- specialty since 1993 Certification requires a full residency and passing a written and an oral examination Residency time is 2 years.

4. 50% of intensivists are anaesthetists in their background 30% are internists in their background 20% are surgeons in their background

5. Formal CCM Training 12 months in a General ICU 3 months in a Cardiac ICU 3 rotations of 3 months each from a choice of : PICU, Nephrology, Pulmonology, Infectiology, Neurosurgery and Thoracic surgery For non-Anaesthetists 3 months in Anaesthetic department is a must.

6. Additional ICU Training Medical students are exposed to ICU during their Internal Medicine and Surgery Blocks (5th & 6th years) Residents from Anaesthesiology,Surgery and Orthopedics are doing time in the ICU A CME program in Anaesthesia &Critical Care exists in the Sacler Medical School in the Tel-Aviv University

7. The key clinical decision makers in the ICU’s in Israel are the Head of the unit together with the senior consultants, all of whom are CCM specialists

8. Pressing Educational needs A need to have students coming for a formal block to the ICU not as a choice A formal rotation in the ICU should be a must for residents in Internal Medicine A CME program dedicated to CCM only should be established Exchange programs, clinical and research, with overseas ICU’s are a real need in order to widen exposure