A closed surgical intensive care unit organization improves cardiac surgical patient outcomes

Lauren A Johnson; Brianna Klucher; Hanna Jensen; Rebecca Reif; Kyle J Kalkwarf; Kevin Sexton; Mary Katherine Kimbrough

doi:10.21037/jtd-22-1471

A closed surgical intensive care unit organization improves cardiac surgical patient outcomes

J Thorac Dis. 2024 Feb 29;16(2):1262-1269. doi: 10.21037/jtd-22-1471. Epub 2024 Feb 27.

Authors

Lauren A Johnson¹, Brianna Klucher², Hanna Jensen¹, Rebecca Reif^{1

3}, Kyle J Kalkwarf¹, Kevin Sexton^{1

3

4

5}, Mary Katherine Kimbrough¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Surgery, Division of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.
² Department of Surgery, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.
³ Department of Health Policy and Management, Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.
⁴ Department of Biomedical Informatics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.
⁵ Division of Pharmaceutical Evaluation and Policy (PEP), Department of Pharmacy Practice, College of Pharmacy, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.

Abstract

Background: Intensive care unit (ICU) organization is a critical factor in optimizing patient outcomes. ICU organization can be divided into "OPEN" (O) and "CLOSED" (C) models, where the specialist or intensivist, respectively, assumes the role of primary physician. Recent studies support improved outcomes in closed ICUs, however, most of the available data is centered on ICUs generally or on subspecialty surgical patients in the setting of a subspecialized surgical intensive care unit (SICU). We examined the impact of closing a general SICU on patient outcomes following cardiac and ascending aortic surgery.

Methods: A retrospective cohort of patients following cardiac or ascending aortic surgery by median sternotomy was examined at a single academic medical center one year prior and one year after implementation of a closed SICU model. Patients were divided into "OPEN" (O; n=53) and "CLOSED" (C; n=73) cohorts.

Results: Cohorts were comparable in terms of age, race, and number of comorbid conditions. A significant difference in male gender (O: 60.4% vs. C: 76.7%, P=0.049), multiple procedure performed (O: 13.21% vs. C: 35.62%, P=0.019), and hospital readmission rates was detected (O: 39.6% vs. C: 9.6%, P=0.0003). Using a linear regression model, a closed model SICU organization decreased SICU length of stay (LOS). Using a multivariate logistic regression, being treated in a closed ICU decreased a patient's likelihood of having an ICU LOS greater than 48 hours.

Conclusions: Our study identified a decreased ICU LOS and hospital readmission in cardiac and ascending aortic patients in a closed general SICU despite increased procedure complexity. Further study is needed to clarify the effects on surgical complications and hospital charges.

Keywords: Intensive care; cardiac surgery; closed intensive care; length of stay (LOS); postoperative care.