About MICAS

The Mobile Intensive Care Ambulance Service (MICAS) is specialist critical care retrieval service available throughout Ireland to assess, stabilise and transfer critically ill patients between hospitals. The patients MICAS retrieves require a level of medical support over and above that which can be provided by an ambulance crew. This may include: mechanical ventilation, vasopressor infusions, intra-aortic balloon pump or extra corporeal life support (ECLS).  

MICAS clinical team:   The MICAS clinical team currently comprises a critical care doctor and nurse with a National Ambulance Service Critical Care Operative (CCO).  

Examples of patients transported:   Patients requiring MICAS retrieval are typically being moved from one intensive care unit to another. However, patients may also be moved to/from emergency departments, interventional radiology units and operating theatres as well as non-critical care areas in smaller hospitals.   

• Clinical retrievals: Critically ill patients, who require an increase in the level of care provided (e.g. dialysis) when the facilities needed for this are not available at the referring hospital or patients who require specialised treatment in a specialised centre e.g. ECMO, neurosurgery, cardiothoracic surgery. 
• Capacity retrievals: Critically ill patients, who requiring a critical care bed elsewhere due to capacity issues at the referring hospital. 
• Repatriations: Repatriation of critical care patients to their local hospital for on-going care.  

Hours of operation:   MICAS is currently delivered between the hours of 08.00h – 20.00h from three hubs: 

• Dublin: Monday – Sunday 
• Cork: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday 
• Galway: Monday – Friday