critical care unit

n. Abbr. CCU

critical care unit (CCU),

a specially equipped hospital area designed for the treatment of patients with sudden life-threatening conditions. CCUs contain resuscitation and monitoring equipment and are staffed by personnel specially trained and skilled in recognizing and immediately responding to cardiac and other emergencies. See also intensive care unit.

unit [u´nit]

1. a single thing; one segment of a whole that is made up of identical or similar segments.

2. a specifically defined amount of anything subject to measurement, as of activity, dimension, velocity, volume, or the like.

3. a distinct part of a hospital, usually having a specific physical location and serving a defined function; see under names of specific units.

Ångström unit angstrom.

atomic mass unit (u) (amu) the unit of mass equal to ¹⁄₁₂ the mass of the nuclide of carbon 12. Called also dalton.

autonomous nursing unit a nursing unit under a decentralized administration system in which the staff is responsible for all aspects of unit functioning.

British thermal unit (BTU) a unit of heat formerly widely used, being the amount necessary to raise the temperature of 1 pound of water from 39° to 40°F., equal to approximately 252 calories.

CH50 unit the amount of complement that will lyse 50 per cent of a standard preparation of sheep red blood cells coated with antisheep erythrocyte antibody.

continuing education unit (CEU) a unit of credit for educational offerings given to professional persons, determined by a professional organization according to a mathematical formula after a thorough review of the program of study, the qualifications of the instructors, and the program objectives.

critical care unit intensive care unit.

electrostatic u's (esu) that system of units that is based on the fundamental definition of a unit charge as one that will repel a similar charge with a force of 1 dyne when the two charges are 1 cm apart in a vacuum.

environmental control unit a computerized system that allows the handicapped individual to operate several different appliances using a keyboard or other input device.

heat unit the amount of heat energy that is produced by one kVp (kilovolt peak) and one mA (milliampere) for one second with single phase, full wave rectified radiographic equipment.

Hounsfield unit an arbitrary unit of x-ray attenuation used for CT scans. Each voxel is assigned a value on a scale in which air has a value of −1000; water, 0; and compact bone, +1000.

intensive care unit see intensive care unit.

International unit (IU)

1. a unit of enzyme activity equal to the amount of enzyme that catalyzes the conversion of one micromole of substrate or coenzyme per minute under specified conditions (temperature, pH, and substrate concentration) of the assay method. Abbreviated U.

2. any of several arbitrary units that have been adopted by international bodies to express the quantities of certain vitamins (A, C, D, and thiamine hydrochloride), hormones (androgen, chorionic gonadotropin, estradiol benzoate, estrone, insulin, progesterone, and prolactin), and drugs (digitalis and penicillin).

Kienböck's unit a unit of x-ray exposure equal to 0.1 erythema dose; symbol X.

motor unit the unit of motor activity formed by a motor nerve cell and its many innervated muscle fibers.

postanesthesia care unit (PACU) a specialty unit in a hospital for giving postanesthesia care (care of patients recovering from anesthesia and intravenous sedation); formerly called recovery room.

radiologic u's units used to measure radiation, including roentgens, rads, rems, and curies.

u's of service (UOS)

1. the number of procedures done by a department.

2. individuals or groups of individuals who are the recipients of nursing care.

short procedures unit (short term care unit) a nursing unit where patients are briefly cared for following a medical or surgical procedure and are then discharged without spending the night.

SI unit any unit of the International System of units (the metric system); see also si units.

step-down unit a nursing unit designated to provide care for patients who are stable enough to be discharged from the intensive care unit but are not yet ready to be cared for on a medical-surgical unit.

Svedberg unit (S) a unit equal to 10⁻¹³ second used for expressing sedimentation coefficients of macromolecules.

Svedberg flotation unit (S_f) a unit equal to 10⁻¹³ second used for expressing negative sedimentation coefficients of macromolecules that float rather than sink in a centrifuge, e.g., lipoproteins.

terminal respiratory unit the functional unit of the lung, including a respiratory bronchiole, alveolar ducts and sacs, and alveoli; called also primary lobule of lung and primary respiratory lobule.

USP unit one used in the United States Pharmacopeia for expressing potency of drugs and other preparations.

critical

1. a point at which one property or state changes to another property or state.

2. pertaining to a crisis in a disease.

critical care

care of a patient in a life-threatening situation of an illness. Includes artificial life support system.

critical care unit

see intensive care unit.

embryological critical period

the period during the life of the embryo, specific for each body system, during which organ genesis takes place.

critical distance

see flight distance.

critical point drying

the technique used in preparing tissues for electron microscopy; to eliminate distortion due to surface tension.

critical temperature

the body temperature above which the animal is said to be fevered. See body temperature.

critical care

patient care pertaining to a crisis in a disease.

critical care medicine

emergency care for victims of trauma or disease.

critical care unit

a unit in a hospital in which special patient care staff and units, including ECG, blood gas analysis apparatus, resuscitation and life support equipment are available and used.

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American Association of Critical Care Nurses Ångström unit atomic mass unit British thermal unit BTU CCU CEU continuing education unit coronary care unit critical Critical Illness Neuromyopathy critical temperature enteral nutrition Hounsfield unit ICU intensive intensive care unit intermediate care unit International unit			COLUMN: REGIONAL DIGEST Computer tracks critical care patients LEOMINSTER - UMass Memorial Medical Center - HealthAlliance Hospital has implemented a computerized monitoring system designed to support patients admitted to the hospital's Critical Care Unit. REGIONAL DIGEST by Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, MA) [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "Achieving excellence through certification" is the motto of our 26-bed medical-surgical Critical Care Unit (CCU). AACN certification corporation value of certification award by AACN News There is a great need to humanise the Critical Care Unit and create a warm and caring environment. The accompaniment needs of the family with a loved one in the ... by Quinton, Charnell; van Rooyen, Dalena; Strumpher, Johanita / Health SA Gesondheid			crisis, adrenal crisis, thyroid crisis-intervention unit CRISP crispatine crispation crispy critter Crisscross Heart crisscross inheritance Crisscrossing crista crista ampullaris crista galli crista obliqua crista terminalis cristobalite crit criteria criterion Critesion Crithidia crithidial stage critical critical access hospital critical care critical care unit critical fusion frequency Critical Illness Neuromyopathy Critical Illness Polyneuropathy Critical Mass critical organ critical organs critical oxygen requirement critical path critical path development critical pathway critical period critical period of development critical point critical pressure Critical Speed critical temperature critical value critical. sensitivity period Criticality Event Criticality Infraction Crivellia Crixivan CRL CRNA CRNI			Critical Care Education and Research Foundation Critical Care Emergency Medical Technician - Paramedic Critical Care Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic Critical Care Emergency Medical Transport Program Critical Care Family Assistance Program Critical Care Flight Paramedic Critical Care Information Advisory Group Critical Care Institute of Western Australia Critical Care Medicine Critical Care Medicine Critical Care Medicine Critical Care Nurse Critical Care Nurse Practitioner Critical Care Nurse Technician Critical Care Nursing Quarterly critical care nutrition critical care nutrition critical care nutrition critical care nutrition Critical Care Outreach Team Critical Care Paramedic Critical Care Quarterly Critical Care Registered Nurse Critical Care Skills Programme Critical Care System for Trauma and Transport Critical Care Transport Critical Care Transport - Paramedic Critical Care Transport Medicine Conference Critical Care Transport Unit critical care unit Critical Care/Trauma Resident Critical Chain Management Critical Chain Project Management Critical Chain/Buffer Management Methodology Critical Characteristic Critical Characteristics Audit Critical Clearing Time Critical Coagulant Concentration Critical Combat Function Critical Command Information Requirements Critical Compliance Objective Critical Components List critical compression ratio Critical Computer Resource Critical Concentration critical condensation temperature Critical Condition Band critical constant critical constants Critical Contact of Interest Critical Control Circuit Critical Control Point Critical Controlled Documents List critical cooling rate