ICU Doc Talk
Episodes
Ep. 75 How to Think in a Crisis
19 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
My new YouTube channel!https://youtube.com/@wickwelkerreads?si=UbAlSGZmqqR0pcwwMy new website!https://wickwelker.com/
Ep. 74 Cardiac Arrest After Heart Surgery
11 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about cardiac arrest in a patient after they’ve had heart surgery. Books discussed:Metabolical by Lustig The Glorious Cause by Middlekauff O...
Ep. 73 Neuro Critical Care
19 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing high yield neuro critical care topics. Hot Takes From the Void: Trump Qatar Jet, Biden Dementia, Putin. Books: Chokepoint by Fishman, One D...
Ep. 72 V/Q Mismatch
05 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing V/Q mismatch, dead space ventilation and hypoxemia. Hot Takes From the Void: Pope Trump, Deportation ‘travel assistance’, Alcatraz Book...
Ep. 71 Type A Dissection
21 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about management of Type A Dissection. Hot Takes From the Void: Pope Francis, JD Vance, TarrifsMy author panel with Mary Robinette Kowalhttps:...
Ep. 70 Choosing a Specialty, Pregnancy and ECMO
03 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
How to choose a medical specialty, discussing pregnancy and ECMO use. Hot Takes From the Void: Tariffs, Cory Booker, Susan Crawford. Books: Supremacy ...
Ep. 69 Critical Care Story Time
03 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Sharing bedside stories of the critically ill.**New segment** Hot Takes From the Void: A brief discussion of current news. This episode: SCOTUS pause ...
Ep. 68 My Book Reads of 2024
24 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Brief overview of the 90+ books I read in 2024. First half is nonfiction, second half fiction. The full list is here 👇https://www.goodreads.com/use...
Ep. 67 Trauma Surgery
17 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about trauma resuscitation in the emergency department, the operating room and the ICU. Book discussion: Genghis Khan by Weatherford, A City o...
Ep. 66 American Fascism
11 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about current fascist insurgency in the US. Books: The Third Reich at War by Evans, The Handmaid’s Tale by Atwood.
Ep. 65 Epidurals
20 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about epidurals and neuraxial anesthesia. Books: Gangsters of Capitalism by Katz, It by Stephen King.
Ep. 64 Pulmonary Hypertension
17 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing the dangers and management of acute pulmonary hypertension. Also talking about insurers trying to limit anesthesia reimbursement and the Un...
Ep. 63 Heart Block & Nuclear War
03 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing heart block and its management. Books: Nuclear War by Jacobson and Strongmen by Ben-Ghiat.
Ep. 62 Leaving Social Media
25 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
My thoughts on why I’ll no longer create social medial content. ECMO case study. Some life philosophy stuff. Book: Age of Revolutions by Zakaria.
Ep. 61 Heart Arrhythmias
17 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing management of atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, ventricular fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia. Books: The Singularity is Nearer b...
Ep. 60 Trump & Sleep
11 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Just a small discussion about the election and talking about sleep hygiene. Books: How Emotions Are Made by Barrett, Of Boys and Men by Reeves, Do And...
Ep. 59 UHC, Mental Health, Hemodynamics
27 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Answering emails and questions. Books: The Man Who Broke Capitalism by Gelles, The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine by Pappe
Ep. 58 What Even is Blood Pressure?
15 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing the math (just a lil) and clinical application of blood pressure and shock. Basic and complex topics to get you started or if you are activ...
Ep. 57 How to Vote
10 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about US politics and history and how to be an informed voter in 2024. Lots of book recommendations.
Ep. 56 How to School
03 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about how to study, take tests and be a successful student. Book discussion: Why Civil Resistance Works by Chenoweth, Travelers in the Third R...
Ep. 55 Stories
17 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
One big story about a complex patient. Books: Nixonland by Perlstein, The Lathe of Heaven by Le Guin
Ep. 54 Communicating in Medicine
09 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about work place conflict, defensiveness and effective communication. Books: The Anxious Generation by Haidt, The Dark Tower by Stephen King
Ep. 53 Conscious Sedation & WWI
26 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about anesthesia for conscious sedation. Book: To End All Wars by Hochschild
Ep. 52 Random Q&A, Civil Wars
01 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Answering random medical questions from listeners. Book discussion is How Civil Wars Start by Barbara F. Walter
Ep. 51 Central Lines
22 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about central lines. Book discussion: Technofeudalism by Yanis Varoufakis.
Ep. 50 Placing an IV
13 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about IV basics. Book Discussion is about the Civil War, Battle Cry of Freedom by McPherson.
Ep. 49 Tracheostomy
26 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing tracheostomy management in a critical setting. Book: The Value of Everything by Mazzucato
Ep. 48 My Book Reads from 2023
16 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Going over about 75 books I read in 2023: politics, economics, history, sci fi and fantasy.
Mini #3 Matthew Perry & Ketamine
20 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Quick chat about ketamine
Ep. 47 Crazy ICU Week
15 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sharing stories about a particularly crazy week I had in the ICU. Book discussion: American Midnight by Hoschild and Yumi and the Nightmare Painter by...
Ep. 46 Tele ICU
27 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about the practice of tele ICU. Books: The Rape of Nanking by Chang, Wellness by Hill.
Ep. 45 The Liver
30 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about liver disease during critical illness. Books: Socialism: Utopian and Scientific by Engels, Blood Song by Ryan, The Name of the Wind by R...
Ep. 44 How to Argue
23 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How to have hard conversations with people. A little ECMO chat. Books: Skeptics Guide to the Universe by Novella, Think Again by Grant, Jade City by L...
Mini #2 Palestinian and Israeli Victims
19 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The discourse is dead. Here are my thoughts if you want them. Thank you.
Ep. 43 Induction Agents, Congo, Faith
16 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about propofol, etomidate and ketamine. Books: Cobalt Red by Kara, King Leopold’s Ghost by Hochschild. Also dicussiom about religious faith....
Ep. 42 Being a Parent
02 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
My experience being a dad. Book discussions are Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child by Gottman and Good Inside by Becky Kennedy.
Mini #1 The Roman Empire
25 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The Roman Empire, paralytics, skepticism
Ep. 41 Obesity
19 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about obesity and anti-fat bias in medicine. Book discussions: What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat by Gordon and The Utopia of R...
Ep. 40 What is Wrong With America?
12 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Me ranting about America. You’ve been warned.
Ep. 39 Random Q&A and Compassionate Feminism
05 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Just random questions and answers. Books: The Will to Change, Factfullness and surprise!
Ep. 38 Life > Career & The Fall of Liberalism
29 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about how career should not be your priority. Book discussion: How Liberalism Failed, A Day of Fallen Night
Ep. 37 Staying Out of the ICU & The Supreme Court
05 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing how to triage patients into the ICU. Book discussions: The Shadow Docket by Vladeck and Hyperion by Simmons
Ep. 36 Patient Anxiety
23 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing the impact and treatment of patient anxiety. Books: The Storm Before the Calm by Friedman and Dreams of Dying by Lietzau
Ep. 35 How to Write a Book & Poverty
10 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing how I go about writing books and how to pursue creative aspirations. Book discussion: Poverty, by America by Desmond
Ep. 34 Cardiac ICU & The Dawn of Everything
03 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Different types of patients in a cardiac ICU. Discussing books The Dawn of Everything by Graeber and The Sword of Kaigen by Wang.
Ep. 33 God, Medicine & The French Revolution
24 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about religion, spirituality and faith in critical care. Book discussion: The French Revolution by Davidson; The Winter King by Cornwall
Ep. 32 Crisis Management
16 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing how to think in a crisis. Book review is Babel by Kuang
Ep. 31 POCUS & Putin
24 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about point of care ultrasound and discussing the book The Road to Unfreedom by Snyder.
Ep. 30 ECPR & Political Extremism
07 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about ECMO during CPR. Book discussion: The Coming of the Third Reich by Evans and discussing political extremism.
Ep. 29 How to Teach, Damar Hamlin, Invisible Women
18 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing teaching in a clinical setting, Damar Hamlin arrest and book discussion is Invisible Women by Pérez
Ep 28. Happy New Year & Polarization
02 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Answering a bunch of random questions. Book discussion: Why We’re Polarized by Ezra Klein.
Ep. 27 Crazy Day in the OR & Maoism
07 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing a crazy day in the OR. Book discussion: The Tragedy of Liberation by Dikotter.
Ep. 26 Confidence & Cyberwarfare
29 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing how to be confident on the job. Book discussion about cyberwarfare: The is How They Tell Me the World Will End by Perlroth
Ep. 25 ICU Liberation & American Conservatism
14 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Very important protocol to get people out of the ICU. Book: The Right by Parenti
Ep. 25 How to Work and Be Happy
07 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing how to live meaningfully and also be gainfully employed. Book discussion: The Atlas of the Heart by Brown.
Ep. 24 Surgeons & Reframing Communism
31 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about my experience working with surgeons. Books discussion: Blackshirts and Reds by Parenti which gives a reframing of communist regimes.
Ep. 23 End of Life Care & The American Empire
24 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing stories about end of life and the book How to Hide an Empire by Immerwahr.
Ep. 22 US Medical Education & Global Collapse
17 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing my opinions about US medical education and book discussion The End of the World is Just the Beginning by Zeihan.
Ep. 21 Crisis in the OR & Profits Over Patients
10 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about all the things that can go wrong during surgery. Also discussing the profit seeking model of American healthcare with book American Sick...
Ep. 20 Brain Death & Corruption
05 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Everything you need to know about brain death. Most important episode I’ve done. Discussing how corruption works with Corruptible by Klaas.
Ep. 19 Substance Use Disorder and Corporate Wokeism
29 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Treatment and management of patients hospitalized with various substance use disorders. Discussing Woke Inc. by Ramaswamy and how many try to rebrand ...
Ep. 18 Patient Story Time & Neoliberal Takeover
22 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
I share stories about patient experiences (all anonymized in both space and time) and discussing the book Evil Geniuses by Andersen about neoliberalis...
Ep. 17 Hypoxia and Liberal Flaw
15 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about problems with the lungs and hypoxia. Discussing flaw and foibles of American liberalism with book Listen Liberal by Frank.
Ep. 16 The Heart and Debt
08 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about the heart as an organ system in critical care. Discussing the nature of debt with the book Debt: The First 5,000 years by the late Graeb...
Ep. 15 The ICU Team and Liberation From Oppression
01 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Going into detail about all the members of an ICU team. Book discussion is Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Freire.
Ep. 14 Shock and Taxing the Ultra Wealthy.
25 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Discussing different types of medical shock. Book discussion of The Triumph of Injustice by Sáez and how the ultra wealthy dodge taxes and what to do...
Ep. 13 Ultrasound and the News Media Complex.
18 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about the importance of physical exam and ultrasound. Book review Hate Inc. by Taibbi.
Ep 12. Acidosis and Socialism Panic
11 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
A fairly detailed discussion about acidosis and book discussion: The Road to Serfdom by Hayek.
Ep. 11 Best Books to Read Right Now.
04 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Brief glimpse of around 100 books about power, economics and race. The end has some sci fi and fantasy books, too!
Ep. 10 Abortion
27 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
My personal views about abortion. Two book discussions: Dead Blondes by Doyle and Hood Feminism by Kendall
Ep. 9 Medical shows vs Real Life, How Immigration Works
20 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
How do medical shows match up to real life? Book discussion: Border and Rule by Walia.
Ep. 8 How to sedate & monopolization.
13 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
How to safely sedate and treat pain in many scenarios. Book discussion: Goliath: The 100-Year War Between Monopoly Power and Democracy by Stoller.
Ep. 7 My path to medicine, corporate feudalism
06 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
I get personal talking about my path to medicine and what I do today. Book analysis: Bullsh*t Jobs by Graber.
Ep. 6 How we die, critical theories.
30 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Trigger warning: talking about death and dying. How do we approach dying and what to do for loved ones. Book discussion: Cynical Theories by Pluckrose...
Ep. 5 How to treat pain, the filibuster
23 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Treating patient pain in many settings and also those with substance use disorder. Book discussion is Kill Switch by Jentleson about the rise and use ...
Ep. 4 What even is anesthesia? Why are there poor countries?
16 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What is the practice of anesthesia? Book discussion: The Divide by Hickel
Ep. 3 COVID, ECMO, Seeing through disinformation
09 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
My experiences with COVID patients, putting them on ECMO, the tragedy of vaccine disinformation and book discussion: Calling Bullshit by Bergstrom
Ep. 2 Arrest, tricky stats, bias
02 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What to do when someone’s heart stops. Discuss difference between average and median. Analysis of the book Thinking, Fast and Slow by Khaneman.
Ep. 1 Intro, RaDonda, Husel and Neoliberalism
25 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
First 2 minutes bad sound, gets better after. Intro to me and my ramblings.