Critical Care Unit

Critical Care Units are areas of the hospital where seriously ill patients receive specialised care. The unit at Dorset County Hospital is situated on Level 2 South Wing; please follow the signs from the South 1 entrance.

The unit has two areas:

• Intensive Care Unit (ICU)
• High Dependency Unit (HDU)

When you arrive

When you arrive at the unit, please ring the bell. Because of the kind of work we do there may be a short delay, but we will do our best to respond to you quickly.

Rest is vital to a patient's recovery, so we ask that only two family members are present at the bedside at any one time. We will do our best to accommodate children's visits: please talk with the nursing staff.

We will always negotiate visiting times if families have particular needs or a patient's condition warrants visiting outside the usual times.

Critical Care Follow-up Clinic

Critical Care at DCH now runs follow-up clinics for anyone who has been admitted to our unit for two days or more. Research shows that people who survive a critical illness may experience a variety of physical and psychological symptoms as they recover.

Many people believe that they are not 'trying hard enough to recover' and should just 'pull themselves together'. We encourage people to talk about their experience, in a safe setting, with clinical staff who understand the impact of critical illness. Most people will bring with them a family member or friend – keeping watch at a bedside can be more traumatic than being a patient.

For more information please call 01305 255596 and ask for Julia Terry.

Critical Care Bereavement Service

Sadly, some people do not survive a critical illness. If you are struggling to deal with the death of someone in Critical Care at DCH please contact us and we can offer support.