A course in critical care for ward staff.

A government review has acknowledged that many critically ill patients are being cared for on acute wards. A lack of resources and intensive care beds, combined with low staffing levels, have led to increased demands being placed on wards that are already struggling to care for critically ill patients. Research shows that ward nurses are well placed to identify early indications of complications and initiate appropriate interventions, and that poor outcomes and some deaths are potentially avoidable. This article describes how one trust developed an in-house education programme to support nurses caring for acutely and critically ill patients on the wards.