Intensive Care Unit (ICU) is the medical facility that treats patients whose lives are in immediate danger, for example when a vital organ such as the heart, liver, lungs, kidneys, or the nervous system is affected. Patients that are admitted into ICUs are provided with complex care treatments and regular monitoring. To assure this specific level of care, the ICU has a team of highly qualified staff and special medical equipment.
ICU Critical Care Equipment and Devices
Equipment used in the intensive care unit ranges from general instruments to measure blood pressure, to highly specialized devices, such as bedside monitors, ventilators, and ECG machines. The ICU critical care equipment also includes defibrillators, patient monitors, ventilators, and CPAP & BPAP systems.
1: Endotracheal Tubes
Many patients admitted to Intensive Care Units have head injuries and need assistance breathing. In such critical a condition, a tube is inserted through the mouth or nose and into the trachea (windpipe). These endotracheal tubes can then be attached to the ventilator. The ET tube goes through the vocal cords, so the patient cannot usually talk until the tube is detached.
There are different endotracheal tubes including oral or nasal, cuffed or uncuffed, reinforced tubes, and double-lumen endobronchial tubes.
2: Defibrillators
Defibrillators are machines that health care providers use to restore the heart to a normal rhythm. They are used to improve arrhythmia, a heartbeat that is uneven or that is quite slow or excessively fast. Defibrillators also restart the heart if it suddenly stops beating.
3: Monitors
The display monitor is a medical device that is fixed at the bedside. It usually displays the heart rate, blood pressure, pulse oximetry, and respiration rate. Staff can usually also see the numbers represented on this screen on a monitor at the nurses’ station. An alarm is also triggered if the patient’s body produces abnormal readings.
4: Ventilators
Ventilators are medical devices that provide artificial breathing. They assist with pulmonary breathing in patients who cannot breathe on their own. Ventilators usually have flexible breathing circuits, a gas supply source, a humidification mechanism, and display monitors to display and record patient respiration and breathing rates. They are fully programmable so the specialist can adjust the volume, pressure, and flow of a patient’s respiration.
