Dr. Wes Ely of Tennessee Valley Appointed to Collaborative Academy for ICU Care Innovations
By Abby Woodruff, Public Affairs Specialist
Wes Ely, MD, MPH, renowned for his pioneering contributions to intensive care unit (ICU) acquired delirium and dementia, has been appointed as a member of the American Academy of Sciences and Letters, an organization that provides fellowship and collaboration to experts in various fields.
As the Associate Director of Aging Research at the Geriatric Research Education Clinical Center (GRECC) within VA Tennessee Valley Healthcare System (TVHS), Ely focuses on improving geriatric ICU care.
This influential research led to new treatment protocols that enhance recovery from ICU-acquired brain disease, such as delirium or dementia. New protocols include early reduction of sedatives, promoting frequent patient mobility, and avoiding the use of benzodiazepines.
“We had to modify how we take care of critically ill patients so that we can help them preserve the way that they used to live and get back to a good, new normal. That was not an easy thing to sell to the NIH (National Institutes of Health) or to journals,” Ely said.
The research from GRECC and Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), has now been translated into 40 languages and implemented in ICUs worldwide, leading to major modifications in international patient care guidelines.
“[Recognition from the academy] is like getting honored for being a troublemaker. Every single person I talked to, who was either already in the academy, or getting inducted, had basically swum upstream against criticism and had to fight to make the problems they were bringing to light,” Ely said.
Ely emphasized the substantial challenge of changing ICU protocols, noting that it took years for the research to be accepted. The academy provides a home for those like Ely, who advocate extensively for their work to be recognized.
“The Academy is trying to say there's a place here for people across the arts, public health, health policy, and hard-core science. [The academy is] for people who have against-the-grain ideas to find a home, nurture one another and not give up when they meet resistance,” Ely said.
At VUMC, Ely established the Critical Illness, Brain Dysfunction, and Survivorship Center, dedicated to studying the psychological, cognitive, and functional impacts of delirium, particularly its links to Alzheimer’s and related dementias.
Ely is a Tulane School of Public Health and Tulane School of Medicine alumnus, earning three degrees from the institution. Currently, he has been a professor of medicine in the Division of Allergy, Pulmonary, and Critical Care Medicine at VUMC for 25 years. With his renowned work, Ely has received several VA awards to further research geriatric and ICU care, including the prestigious VA Paul B. Magnuson in 2024.
“For me, my work is an act of service to give back to the people who have gone before me and those in suffering and in a way, help them and their families find a path towards recovery and hope,” Ely said after receiving the Magnuson award.