Nurse understaffing is associated with adverse events in postanaesthesia care unit patients.

Aims And Objectives: To investigate the associations between nurse staffing and the incidence and severity of hypoxaemia, arterial hypotension and bradycardia of postoperative patients during their postanaesthesia care unit stay.

Background: Nurse understaffing has been associated with adverse patient outcomes in a variety of hospital settings. In the postanaesthesia care unit, nursing shortage is common and can be related to compromised prevention, detection and treatment of adverse events.

Peak body temperature predicts mortality in critically ill patients without cerebral damage.

Objectives: We investigated whether mortality in intensive care unit (ICU) patients without cerebral damage is associated with fever manifestation and characteristics.

Methods: Patients admitted to a medical-surgical ICU between October 2005 and July 2006 were prospectively studied. Exclusion criteria were acute brain injury, intracerebral/subarachnoid hemorrhage, ischemic stroke, and brain surgery.

Fever and agitation in elderly ICU patients: a descriptive study.

Objective: To investigate the association between fever and agitation in elderly, critically ill patients.

Setting: Medical-surgical Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of a Greek, tertiary care hospital.

Research Methodology: Descriptive, quantitative study conducted from October 2005 to September 2006.

Association between nursing workload and mortality of intensive care unit patients.

Purpose: To investigate differences in mortality of intensive care unit (ICU) patients according to the ratio between total patient care demands and nurse staffing.

Design: Observational, prospective study. Patients consecutively admitted in the medical-surgical ICU of a Greek hospital over a 1-year period were enrolled.

Nursing workload associated with fever in the general intensive care unit.

Background: Fever in a patient in the intensive care unit necessitates several nursing tasks. Moreover, factors associated with increased patient care needs may be associated with fever.

Objective: To identify relationships between fever and characteristics of fever and nursing workload at the patient level.

Patient severity as an indicator of nursing workload in the intensive care unit.

The importance of measuring nursing workload in the intensive care unit (ICU) has been supported by both an increasing demand for nursing personnel and the relationship of nursing workload with patient safety. According to previous studies, the correlation between clinical severity of ICU patients and nursing workload measured by Therapeutic Intervention Scoring System has been estimated to be particularly high. The aim of this study was to investigate whether clinical severity of ICU patients can be used for the prediction of nursing workload on a daily basis.