Miodownik (Intensive Care) describes the historical development of the intensive care
unit (ICU) from facilities that treated casualties of war to those today
that treat all life-threatening illnesses and injuries. Described as the CEs most challenging environment, the ICU
accommodates patients often on the brink of survival intimately linked to a concentration of
complex, expensive diagnostic and therapeutic devices utilized by dedicated, hard-working
and occasionally overworked, overstressed, and inadequately trained personnel.