Clinical Impact

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2002 entitled "Physician Staffing Patterns and Outcomes in Critically Ill Patients: A Systemic Review" included the following conclusion:

High-intensity ICU physician staffing, defined as mandatory intensivist consultation or all intensivist-directed care, is associated with reduced hospital and ICU mortality, as well as hospital and ICU length-of-stay as compared to low-intensity ICU physician staffing (with no intensivist or only elective intensivist consultation).

Another study, "Effect of a multiple-site intensive care unit telemedicine program on clinical and economic outcomes," was published in Critical Care Medicine in 2004 and reported lower ICU mortality rates as well as shorter length-of-stay metrics during the test period of using a tele-ICU.

ICU patient care by intensivists has long been associated with reduced ICU mortality and length of stay in medical literature. According to many published studies, this holds true regardless of whether care is provided at the bedside or through telemedicine technology.

Advanced ICU Care hospital partner findings, whether they use our tele-ICU program or our intensivists at the bedside, echo these studies. Our hospital partners have experienced reductions in ICU mortality ranging from 10 to 64 percent, and reductions in length of stay for the ICU (ranging from 9 to 25 percent) and for the hospital overall (ranging from 3 to 39 percent). St. Mary's Health Center's experience is summarized in the table below.

Saving lives - Implementation of best care practices, around-the-clock monitoring and the ability to identify patient care issues before they become problems enhance patient safety ― and save lives.

Reducing length of stay - Improved patient safety leads to fewer complications and shorter ICU and hospital stays.