Project:

The eICU program provides an organizational and technology platform to transform critical care. eICUs are remote monitoring centers using a proactive care model leveraging scarce intensivist and nursing resources, dramatically improving quality of care. This project incorporated input from the end users (eRNs) at nine health systems to qualify and quantify their workload.

Problem:

There is an absence of research depicting the eICU nurses' productivity as well as their impact to patient outcomes.

Objective:

The aim was to develop a quantitative tool based on a conceptual representation of eICU nursing practice to capture the contribution of these nurses to patient outcomes. This form will capture data, currently nonexistent, allowing for comparison of results across multiple eICU sites (benchmarking).

Method:

eICU nurses across the country brainstormed over several months to define the concepts, resulting in a preliminary form that categorized and consolidated terminology. The form elements forced a linear sequencing to analyze each intervention, mirroring the nursing process. A technology solution was then applied to the form content, accounting for accessibility, usability, automated data collection, reporting, and graphs. The tool included validation rules and data quality checks. Training, pilot, and rollout were implemented. A usability survey was provided to all participating sites.

Outcome:

All staff were trained, and the form was deployed to 32 sites. The results were tabulated via the database and will be presented.

Lessons learned:

The product and "go live" internal processes were challenged and worked well. Multiple technology issues were discovered at deployment of the software.

Section Description

We are pleased to share the paper presentation abstracts from the Summer Institute in Nursing Informatics, Informatics at the Point of Care: A Barrier or a Bridge?, held at the University of Maryland School of Nursing, July 22 to 25, 2009. The program, chaired by Dr Judy Ozbolt, was a great success. Each of the following abstracts was selected for presentation by a peer-review committee.