Most published large critical care studies are conducted through national or international critical care research networks. But what are the characteristics of ICUs belonging to these networks? The Health Services Research and Outcomes (HSRO) section of the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine (ESICM) set out to answer this question. Typically such ICUs are situated in public and teaching hospitals. Most are organised as closed units and have an intensivist present at night. ICU volume is associated with intensivist staffing model and presence of a multidisciplinary ICU round.

Professor Bertrand Guidet, France, outlined the findings at the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine (ESICM) congress in Barcelona this month.

Participants
  • AMIBnet (Brazil)
  • ANZICS CTG (Australia, New Zealand)
  • ARDSNet (USA)
  • ASDI (Austria)
  • AZURéa (France)
  • CCCTG (Canada)
  • CCCCTG (China)
  • BRICNET (Brazil)
  • CUBRéa (France)
  • EDUSEPSIS (Spain)
  • GiVITI (Italy)
  • InFACT
  • NICE (Netherlands)
  • OUTCOMERéa (France)
  • PROSAFE (Hungary, Poland, Slovenia, Cyprus, Greece and Israel) REVA (France and Switzerland)
  • SCCTG (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden)
  • SEPNET (Germany)
  • UK trial group
  • USCIITG CIOS group (USA)

Results


N
%  
Closed ICU model  339
(88)
Presence of an intensivist involved in bedside care at night  271  (70)
Presence of  computerised physician order entry
237
(61)
Presence of an electronic medical record
248  (64)
Multidisciplinary ICU round
282
(73)








80% of responding ICUs were located in teaching and/or public hospitals. One-third treat more than 1,000 patients a year. ICU volume is associated with intensivist staffing model and presence of a multidisciplinary ICU round.

ICU volume and organisational factors

p
Closed ICU model staffing
<0.0002
Multidisciplinary round
<0.002
Medical record reporting system
<0.001






Claire Pillar
Managing Editor, ICU Management

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Critical Care, ESICM 2014, ICUs, Networks Most published large critical care studies are conducted through national or international critical care research networks. But what are the characteristic...