There are many staff in an ICU with different roles. The exact make-up will depend on which ICU you visit but the general roles are similar.

Consultants

Consultants are the most senior member of the team who will be assisted by other doctors called registrars and senior house officers.

The consultant intensive care doctor is in overall charge of the unit on a day to day basis and responsible for the care of the patients. Some units are large enough to have more than one consultant on duty at a time. In most hospitals the consultant in intensive care will have responsibility for intensive care only when they are on duty.

They usually work several days at a time to provide continuity, sometimes with a colleague covering the night time "on call" as they are often called in at night to assess patients and advise the junior doctors. Some units have a different consultant each day. There is always a careful handover from one consultant to the next, discussing each of the current patients in turn and the other patients in the hospital whose doctors have asked the intensive care team to advise on.

Most intensive care consultants in Britain are also anaesthetists or have trained as anaesthetists as well as in intensive care. A few intensive care consultants work in or were trained in a medical speciality such as respiratory medicine, acute medicine or emergency medicine. Increasingly consultants work only or mostly in intensive care. It takes between eight and twelve years after leaving medical school to complete training in intensive care and start working as a consultant. Almost all intensive care consultants are physicians or anaesthetists so are called "doctor" and not "mister" (only surgeons revert to "mister" when they become members of the college of surgeons).

Junior Doctors

Doctors who work in intensive care are called anaesthetists or intensivists. These doctors are specialists in intensive care and pain management. The junior doctors (some of whom have been training for 8-12 years since leaving medical school) will provide much of the specialist procedures and patient assessments under the direction and advice of the consultant. The original team that admitted the patient will continue to be involved in their care and other specialist doctors may be consulted as needed.

There will be one or two "tiers" of junior doctors working in intensive care. These doctors will be a mixture of trainees from different specialities. Some of them will be training to become intensive care consultants, whereas others will be training in intensive care for a limited time (3 to 12 months) as part of their anaesthetic, medical or surgical training. There is always a junior doctor available on the intensive care unit who can perform an emergency intubation (inserting a breathing tube and assisting a patient's breathing). The junior doctors will be working a shift system of 8-13 hours at a time.

Critical care practitioners

This is a new role that is increasing in number. These professionals can come from a variety of backgrounds, usually senior intensive care nurses who have undergone a period of advanced training to enable them to perform a wide range of duties and skills some of which could only be done by doctors previously. They are permanent members of staff who can provide a stable basis to the service. They work under the supervision of the consultant like the junior doctors.

Nurses

Nursing Staff are frequently led by a Matron who manages the overall operation of the unit. Other nurses on the unit may include staff nurses and senior staff nurses. Nursing staff work in teams and operate in shifts to ensure 24 hour care for the patient, allowing continuity of care and helping build a better relationship between staff, the patient and relatives. Student nurses may also be working on ICU under close supervision and all the nursing staff have specialist training to provide the necessary treatment for the patient. The matron or chief nurse is in overall charge of the nurses on the unit and has a very important managerial role. The coordinator is the nurse in charge of the unit that day who deals with organising which nurse is caring for which patients and manages the admission and discharge of patients with the consultant. There is usually one nurse for every patient that is on a ventilator and one nurse for two patients otherwise.

Most nurses in intensive care have worked in other areas of the hospital before undergoing further training to work in intensive care. They are usually more senior nurses and have a range of specialist skills. There are specialist nursing qualifications which these nurses will undertake before being promoted to "sister" (if female) or "charge nurse" (if male).

Outreach nurses

Some hospitals may have outreach nurses. These are specialist senior intensive care nurses who have undergone additional training and provide a consultation service throughout the hospital, seeing patients whom the ward staff are concerned about and following up on patients recently discharged from the intensive care unit.

Physiotherapists

Physiotherapists may be involved in treating a patient's chest to ensure their lungs are kept clear of a build-up of fluid that could lead to chest infections. They are also involved with the rehabilitation of recovering patients, helping them mobilise, exercise and to assist them transfer from bed and to a chair.

Occupational Therapists

Occupational Therapists are trained staff skilled in identifying the physical, psychological and social needs of people. They work to find ways of managing a patient's daily living activities, mobility and condition generally. This can take the form of advice, rehabilitation, referral to other agencies and helping to obtain any specialist equipment or adaptations for the home that might be needed.

Speech and Language Therapist

Speech and language therapists, sometimes referred to as SALT, work with people who have problems with communication or with chewing or swallowing. Their patients include those who, because of accident or illness, have physical problems with eating or communicating. They can offer expert advice on swallowing problems, aspiration and also changes in speech, giving support to the patient when they may feel frustrated at all the problems the tube may have added to their overall condition.

Pharmacists

A pharmacist will frequently visit the unit and is involved in monitoring the patient's medication. They review each patient's drug chart and ensure that doses are correct and that drug interactions are detected. They also advise on difficult treatments and ensure that the unit drug stocks are adequate.

Dietician

Dieticians visit the ICU to ensure patients receive the correct nutrients. This is particularly important while the patient is being fed through a tube in the nose that leads to the stomach or through a tube directly into a vein.

Radiographer

Some patients may require x-rays whilst in ICU to check on their condition and this will be done by a radiographer.

Health care assistants

Members of staff who assist the nurses in caring for patients (turning and cleaning patients) and stocking equipment and laundry.