Therapeutic interventions scoring system-28 in the intensive care unit, in reference to nursing workload

Aim: The aim of this study was the calculation of the nursing time that was needed for patients’ care. Furthermore the study aimed to measure its relation with the nurses’ number in each shift and in each patient. MATERIAL-Method: For the study’s purposes the TISS-28 protocol was applied to the 10 patients of the Anaesthesiological ICU of the AHEPA UHTH. The study took place for 6 days from Wednesday till Monday (29/07/04–05/08/04). The registration of the TISS-28 was made every 24 hours and every 8 hours separately. The data were recorded during the morning shift. Data analysis were made by t-test modificated by Bonferoni. Statistically important differences were regarded for P<0.5. Results: The measurement of TISS-28 showed that the average score of nursing care demanded in each patient in 24 hours was 40.85 points, or 7 hours and 13 min. When comparing the demanding time for completing the nursing procedures in every category and in every 8 hours, no significant statistic difference was found. The study of the annual nursing program showed that the average score of the nurses’s number in each shift was 4.3 nurses and the nurse/patient ratio was ≈1:2.5. The statistical analysis of the results of this research set the P>0.10 Conclusions: The results gave a real and proved picture of the patients’ severeness and the nursing workload. In combination with the study of other parameters such as the annual nursing program and the laws in effect, the existing numerical ration of the nurses/shift/patient as well as and the required one became evident.