Association of health information technology and teleintensivist coverage with decreased mortality and ventilator use in critically ill patients

Abstract

Background: Little evidence exists to support implementing various health information technologies, such as telemedicine, in intensive care units. Methods: A coordinated health information technology bundle (HITB) was implemented along with remote intensivist coverage (RIC) at a 727-bed academic community hospital. Critical care specialists provided bedside coverage during the day and RIC at night to achieve intensivist coverage 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. We evaluated the effect of HITB-RIC on mortality, ventilator and vasopressor use, and the intervention length of stay. We compared our results with those achieved at baseline. Results: A total of 954 control patients who received care for 16 months before the implementation of HITB-RIC and 959 study patients who received care for 10 months after the implementation were included in the analysis. Mortality for the control and intervention groups were 21.4% and 14.7%, respectively. In addition, the observed mortality for the intervention group was 75.8% (P