STAFF IN THE INTENSIVE CARE UNIT (ICU)

Doctors

In an ICU there will usually be a consultant who leads a team of doctors. The consultant and their team usually go around the unit each day to check on each patient and make decisions about their treatment and care. There may be other staff with them, the doctors and their team may spend time with patient each day to see how the patient are getting on. Doctors who are specialists in other areas may also visit the patient. They may be medical, surgical or orthopedic doctors, who patient saw before he were admitted to the unit. They will look after patient again once he are well enough to be looked after on a general ward.

Nurses

In an ICU, one nurse will usually look after one patients. Your nurse will be responsible for providing most of the care your love one need and, in the early stages, will spend most of their time at  patient bedside. They will also work with other professionals, such as doctors or physiotherapists, to make sure patient receive the correct treatment and care when need it.

The nurses will do things for the patient that they can't do yourself, including the following.

• Taking regular blood tests
• Giving patient the drugs and fluids that the doctors have prescribed
• Recording blood pressure, heart rate and oxygen levels
• Clearing fluids and mucus from patient chest using a suction tube
• Turning patient in the bed every few hours to prevent them getting sores on skin
• Cleaning patient teeth and moistening his mouth with a wet sponge
• Bathing patient in bed
• Changing patient sheets
• Changing patient surgical stockings, which may be used to help his circulation when patient are inactive (lying still) for a long time
• Putting drops in patient eyes to make it easier for him to blink

Dieticians

A dietician will visit your love one to work out the nutritional needs and how it’s will be fed. Patient may be fed through a nasogastric tube (a tube that goes up your nose and down into your stomach) or, if they cannot have food in your stomach, they may be fed through a drip straight into their vein.

Physiotherapists

During your stay in intensive care, you will be seen and treated by a physiotherapist. They will try to make sure your lungs are kept clear by carrying out physiotherapy on your chest. They will also exercise your arms and legs when you are asleep to work your muscles and to stop your joints becoming stiff. If you were ventilated (connected to a machine to help you breathe) in the ICU, the physiotherapist will give you exercises to help strengthen your lungs and breathing muscles so you can breathe without the machine as you get better. This will reduce the chances of you getting a lung infection.

As you get better, physiotherapists also help you with exercises to get you strong enough to get out of bed.  When you're ready, they will help you get up and moving about again.