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Intensive care unit

from Medical topics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 December 2014

By
Christina Jones  and
Richard D. Griffiths
Edited by
Susan Ayers ,
Andrew Baum ,
Chris McManus ,
Stanton Newman ,
Kenneth Wallston ,
John Weinman  and
Robert West
Christina Jones
Affiliation:
University of Liverpool
Richard D. Griffiths
Affiliation:
University of Liverpool
Susan Ayers
Affiliation:
University of Sussex
Andrew Baum
Affiliation:
University of Pittsburgh
Chris McManus
Affiliation:
St Mary's Hospital Medical School
Stanton Newman
Affiliation:
University College and Middlesex School of Medicine
Kenneth Wallston
Affiliation:
Vanderbilt University School of Nursing
John Weinman
Affiliation:
United Medical and Dental Schools of Guy's and St Thomas's
Robert West
Affiliation:
St George's Hospital Medical School, University of London
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Summary

Overview

A critical illness is a major life event for patients and their relatives and happens within the confines of an intensive care unit (ICU). The ICU is where you will find some of the sickest patients in the hospital, with very intensive medical and nursing interventions and monitoring being undertaken around the clock. In the UK each patient has a dedicated nurse looking after them as they may require support for different failed organs, such as artificial ventilation, dialysis or drugs to raise their blood pressure.

The psychological impact of a critical illness is now recognized to go well beyond the confines of the ICU. The patients admitted to an ICU vary in age, illness type and severity and this differs considerably between hospitals depending on the population they serve. Patients undergoing major surgery who know before they go to theatre that they will be admitted to ICU afterwards may experience a strong sense of security because they have been prepared for their admission beforehand (Shi et al., 2003). However, for the many patients who develop an illness needing an admission to ICU as an emergency such preparation is simply not possible. The reasons for admission to ICU may vary greatly, from a major car crash to severe pneumonia. However the majority of these patients will be so ill that they will need a ventilator to do their breathing for them for varying periods of time, from hours to months.

Type
Chapter
Information
Cambridge Handbook of Psychology, Health and Medicine , pp. 760 - 763
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2007

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References

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