Intensive care in Australia and New Zealand.

This article provides an up-to-date account of intensive care in Australia and New Zealand. Overall, intensive care medicine in Australia and New Zealand is in a healthy state. It began early and has developed into a distinct and strong medical specialty. There are well-developed organizations dealing with all aspects of the specialty. The ICU is recognized as an expensive and limited resource. Overall, intensivists in these two countries have good control of it and have learned to use it wisely.