International journal for quality in health care : journal of the International Society for Quality in Health Care
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Int J Qual Health Care · Oct 2015
Differences between nurse- and physician-assessed ICU characteristics using a standardized survey.
Surveys are often used to assess intensive care unit (ICU) organizational characteristics for quality improvement. Typically these surveys target ICU nurse managers and/or physician directors. However, it is unclear whether these providers' assessments differ. We sought to determine whether differences existed in nurse- and physician-assessed ICU characteristics using a standardized survey. ⋯ Despite a standardized survey, we found substantial disagreement on ICU characteristics when assessed by the nurse manager or physician director. This study raises questions about the use of surveys to examine ICU organizational characteristics and suggests that differences in nurse managers' and medical directors' assessments could be helpful in guiding future ICU quality improvement projects.