Critical Care Unit (CCU) refers to the intensive therapy that caters to patients who are severely unwell and need critical medical attention. A Critical care unit provides the life support for acutely ill and injured patients. CCU teams are multidisciplinary, made up of highly skilled intensive care nurses, doctors and specialists trained in providing critical care for patients with a variety of medical, surgical and trauma conditions. Critical care units are also sometimes referred to as intensive therapy units (ITU’s).
CCU is also known as an acute care center which specializes in the treatment of patients who require a longer hospital stay and prolonged mechanical ventilation to recover from complex medical conditions. The average length of stay at an CCU is 25 days or longer. Typically, patients in an CCU require prolonged ventilator use or weaning, intensive respiratory care, multiple IV medications or transfusions, complex wound care or care for burns.
