- The critically ill patient and the branches of Critical Care: Out of Hospital Medical Emergency System, Emergency Department. The role played by nursing triage.

- In hospital evaluation and treatment of the critically ill: the ABCDE approach, MEWS scale, emergency trolley, the outreach team, transportation of the patient to the intensive care area.

- Airways: learn and apply the maneuvers necessary to maintain patency of the anatomical airways, provide assistance in maneuvers like tracheal intubation and percutaneous tracheostomy, manage artificial airways.

- Breathing: recognize main alterations of breathing, monitor respiratory function, know and manage devices for oxygen therapy, assist the person undergoing non-invasive and invasive ventilation, assist the person with severe acute respiratory insufficiency (pronation, notions on extracorporeal ventilatory support techniques), share and apply a respiratory weaning plan (ABCDEF bundle) within the team.

- Circulation: monitor cardiocirculatory function, assist a shocked patient, learn how to administer vasoactive and antiarrhythmic drugs, learn about invasive cardiocirculatory support techniques. Bases of nursing in Cardiac Surgery ICU.

- Disability: early recognition of sensory alterations, apply neurological examination and evaluation scales, continuous monitoring of neurological functions, learn how to administer sedative-hypnotic, analgesic and muscle relaxants, bases of nursing in Neurosurgical Intensive Care.

- Exposure: learn and apply the principles of "basic nursing care" in ICU: Interventional Patient Hygiene Model, body care, positioning of the critical patient. Learn the role of the trauma team and provide assistance to the polytraumatized patient, perform "head to feet" examination, learn mobilization techniques, manage immobilization devices during in-hospital transportation of trauma patients. Care for burned patients.

- Family and spiritual involvement (F): involving the critically ill patient's family: visiting policies and open intensive care units, PTSD and the role of intensive care diaries. Dealing with the end of life in intensive care: therapeutic withdrawal and palliation. Nursing role in organ donation.

- Measuring the quality of nursing care in intensive care: nursing sensitive outcomes:
- prevent aspiration pneumonia, manage enteral nutrition, gastric stagnation and alvus;
- manage intravascular accesses and prevent related infections;
- prevent infections associated with urinary catheter;
- prevent hospital-acquired injuries (DRPUs, restraints and the risk of falls);
- reduce the risk of venous thromboembolism.