Our Critical Care Unit cares for patients who are seriously ill or recovering from major surgery. We provide life‑supporting treatments and close monitoring for people who need a higher level of care than can be given on a general ward.
Patients in critical care may need help with one or more of their vital organ systems, such as their lungs, heart or kidneys. We use specialist medicines, equipment and continuous monitoring to support them while they recover.
Because patients can become very unwell very quickly, each person receives a high level of nursing care. Depending on how unwell they are, they will have either:
- one‑to‑one nursing in Intensive Care (ICU)
- one nurse caring for two patients in High Dependency (HDU)
Supporting families
We understand how stressful it can be when a loved one is critically ill. Our team will:
- keep you updated regularly
- involve you in key decisions
- offer support and guidance throughout your relative's stay
Critical Care Outreach Team
Our Outreach Team works across the hospital to support patients who are at risk of becoming more unwell or who are recovering after time in Critical Care. They help ensure patients receive the right level of care wherever they are in the hospital.
Information videos
We have provided some short videos to help explain common treatments and procedures used in Critical Care, such as:
Ventilation
A common reason for a patient needing to come to critical care is respiratory failure, which is when the lungs are not able to take in enough oxygen for the body's needs.
Induced Coma
The term induced coma is commonly used to describe the state of sedation that some patients on critical care are temporarily placed into, most commonly in order to facilitate therapies like going onto a ventilator.
Tracheostomy
A tracheostomy is a procedure that is performed on some critical care patients, in order to aid their recovery from a period of prolonged mechanical ventilation.
Sepsis and Lines
A common reason patients are admitted to hospital is due to infection. Sometimes, there is a clear source of the infection, for example a chest infection, also known as pneumonia or a urinary tract infection, also known as a water infection. In other cases, it may be less obvious.
Renal replacement therapy
One reason a patient may need to be admitted to critical care would be for something we call renal replacement therapy, also commonly called ‘filtration'. This is a treatment using a machine that effectively does most of the job of the kidneys for a period of time, similar to what many people call dialysis.
Delirium
Delirium is a condition that affects a patient's thoughts, perceptions and levels of awareness. It is sometimes referred to as an acute confusional state, and is extremely common in patients admitted to critical care, affecting 2 in 3 patients.
Cardiac Arrest
One reason you or your relative may need to be admitted to critical care would be following a cardiac arrest. A cardiac arrest is an event when for various causes, a patients' heart will either stop beating, or beat in an uncontrolled rhythm that does not generate any blood pressure.
These videos were filmed in our unit to give a real sense of what to expect.
Please note that all videos were filmed on site, on the Critical Care Unit. All patients have been anonymised. The majority of photographs included are from our Critical Care, although occasional stock photos have also been included.
These videos were filmed during COVID, so you may see staff wearing masks when they wouldn’t normally.
