Intensivist physician-to-patient ratios and mortality in the intensive care unit
Main finding · ICU mortality by intensivist caseloadResult — go to the resultHazard ratio 0.987 95% CI 0.968–1.007Authors' conclusion
Mortality for ICU patients appears resistant to high intensivist caseloads.
Study context
- Population
- Intensive care unit (ICU) patients in 29 ICUs in 10 US hospitals, 2018–2020248 intensivists
- Participants
- 51,656 patients
- Exposure
- Daily intensivist-to-patient ratio
- Outcome
- ICU mortality
- Follow-up
- 28 days
Methodological detailsmulticentre, multivariable proportional hazards model with time-varying covariates
- Multicentre
- Multivariable proportional hazards model with time-varying covariates
Main finding
ICU mortality by intensivist caseload
Hazard ratio
0.987
95% CI 0.968–1.007
P = 0.2
Each additional patient per intensivist
HR 0.987 (95% CI 0.968–1.007); P = 0.2
Each additional patient per intensivist, as printed
As reported in the abstract
- Average caseload per day (mean, SD 5.7)
- 11.8
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Caseload over sample-wide average
| HR (95% CI) | P value | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Caseload over sample-wide average | 0.907 (0.763–1.077) | P = 0.26 | |
| 0.512Hazard ratio (log scale) |
Cumulative days with caseload over sample-wide average
| HR (95% CI) | P value | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Cumulative days with caseload over sample-wide average | 0.991 (0.966–1.018) | P = 0.52 | |
| 0.512Hazard ratio (log scale) |
Effect modification by physicians-in-training, nurse practitioners and physician assistants
- Relationship not modified
- Interaction P: 0.14
Original publication
Intensivist physician-to-patient ratios and mortality in the intensive care unit. Intensive Care Med. Published 3 May 2023. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →