| Frequently Asked Questions: |
What is it?
BASIC is a short course, usually held over 2 days, which covers essential and fundamental aspects of Intensive Care.
Who is it aimed at?
It is primarily designed as an introduction to Intensive Care for doctors coming to work in the ICU for the first time, but has also proved popular with senior ICU nurses, Emergency department doctors and other doctors who have responsibility for severely ill patients.
What is the format?
The format is similar to ACLS, ATLS and FCCS. The course consists of course manual, brief clinically-based lectures, skill stations, e-learning and pre- and post-course tests. The course works on a cascading model with local instructors delivering the content after appropriate training.
How much does it cost?
There are no license fees for running BASIC. Course material is supplied in an electronic format. Course manuals can be printed locally from the supplied pdf (colour printing is recommended) or supplied at cost (approximately US$3 per book plus shipping). Registration fees for candidates vary from course to course depending on venue costs and degree of subsidy.
Who can run and teach courses?
The course director must be an Intensive Care specialist and must have attended a BASIC instructor course. We prefer it if most of the instructors have also attended a course. At least 50% of the instructors on any given course must be Intensive Care specialists (however that is defined in your country).
What topics are covered?
How does it differ from FCCS?
BASIC is more focused on organ support and syndromes rather than specific diseases, does not charge license fees and makes greater use of graphics in slides and the course manual. For a more detailed analysis see Joynt GM et al, J Crit Care, 26:533.e1-533.e10.
Where has the course been run?
In over 50 countries including Albania, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, China, Denmark, Egypt, Fiji, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Lithuania, Korea, Moldova, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Nepal, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Serbia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Sudan, South Africa, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America.
How does it differ from BASIC for Low Resource settings?
BASIC LR is designed to teach care of the critically ill in very low resource hospital settings. Your choice of which course to teach should be based on the level of resources that are available to you in your hospital. The material in BASIC assumes that you have access to all the facilities that would be expected in a well equipped hospital in a high or high-middle income country. BASIC LR is based on the assumption that you do NOT have mechanical ventilation, syringe pumps, invasive monitoring, CT scan, specialist surgery, laboratory investigations beyond Na, K, urea, glucose and haemoglobin, blood products other than whole blood.
What about nurses?
BASIC is suitable for senior ICU nurses but not for novice ICU nurses. We have an equivalent course (BASIC for Nurses) which is designed for their needs.
Is the course endorsed?
The course has been endorsed by:
What are the conditions for running a course?
If you are interested in running a course please contact us for further details.