When nurses and physicians collaborate, it can produce measurable results in critical care. A recent study published in Critical Care Nurse found nurse-physician collaboration is associated with decreased rates of healthcare-associated infections in critical care.
Researchers examined five years of data on nurses' perception of their work relationship with physicians in four ICUs in conjunction with patient outcome data from the same units for the same time period. For outcomes, researchers focused on ventilator-associated pneumonia and central line-associated bloodstream infection, which are the two most common HAIs.
Units where nurses reported a favorable perception of the nurse-physician partnership also showed lower rates of VAP and CLABSI, according to the report.
Researchers also found units with a greater proportion of certified nurses had lower incidences of HAIs and those with higher numbers of nursing hours per patient day had lower rates of CLABSI, while nurse skill mix and voluntary turnover had no effect on HAIs.
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