Assessment of Costs of Avoidable Delays in Intensive Care Unit Discharge.

ABSTRACT:

Importance

Delays in transfer for discharge-ready patients from the intensive care unit (ICU) are increasingly described and contribute to strained capacity.

Objective

To describe the epidemiological features and health care costs attributable to potentially avoidable delays in ICU discharge in a large integrated health care system.

Design, setting, and participants

This population-based cohort study was performed in 17 adult ICUs in Alberta, Canada, from June 19, 2012, to December 31, 2016. Participants were patients 15 years or older admitted to a study ICU during the study period. Data were analyzed from October 19, 2018, to May 20, 2020.

Exposures

Avoidable time in the ICU, defined as the portion of total ICU patient-days accounted for by avoidable delay in

SUBMITTER: Bagshaw SM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7439109 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature