Intensive Care Unit, a specialized hospital department that provides intensive treatment and monitoring for critically ill patients.
Medical acronym formed in the mid-20th century as hospitals developed specialized units for critical care. The concept emerged from military medicine and polio treatment centers requiring constant monitoring.
ICUs revolutionized medicine by concentrating the sickest patients with the most skilled staff and advanced equipment in one place. This organizational innovation has saved countless lives and represents how medical care evolved from general wards to highly specialized treatment environments.
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