Rather than address in detail the design, theory of operation, specifications, and performance of a specific
medical device, the authors give an overview of the types of devices that are commonly
encountered in their clinical engineering practice in all areas of the hospital.
Throughout this section, the reader’s attention is directed to those particular aspects of a
device’s performance and safety that the author deems most significant in daily practice.
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.