Introduction to critical illness

Critical illness can be complicated and involves failure of one or more of your major organs (e.g. heart, lungs, liver, kidneys) and requires intensive care in an intensive care unit (ICU), which has ICU doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals (e.g. physiotherapists, pharmacist, dietitians) who provide organ support and treatment to help you recover. There are four ICU wards at St Thomas's hospital and one ICU ward at Guy's hospital. Critically ill patients can also be cared for within our high dependency units (HDUs). 

In ICU, patients have much greater care needs than those on the general wards within the hospital. Each patient has a nurse allocated to care solely for them during the day and another during the the night, and a team of ICU doctors led by ICU consultants assess their illness and response to treatment throughout the day. Other ICU specialists, such as Speech and Language Therapists or Psychologists, also offer assistance when needed.