Current Status and Influencing Factors of Nursing Care Insufficiency in Intensive Care Units: A Cross-Sectional Study Focusing on Staff Shortages, Workload, and Care Omissions

Abstract

Objective: This study aims to investigate the status of nursing care omissions in intensive care units (ICUs) in China and identify factors influencing these omissions. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 1162 ICU nurses from 30 hospitals across nine provinces in China. Data were collected using questionnaires on nursing care omissions, clinical leadership (nurses’ ability to influence and coordinate care), and safety attitudes (perceptions of safety culture). Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and multiple linear regression were performed using SPSS. Results: The mean score for nursing care omissions is 57.38±21.27, clinical leadership is 59.13±15.30, and safety attitudes is 119.00 ±21.16. A negative correlation is observed between ICU nursing care omission scores and clinical leadership scores (r=−.212, p<0.001), and a negative correlation is observed between ICU nursing care omission scores and safety attitude scores (r=−.241, p<0.001). The multiple linear regression analysis indicates that the factors influencing nursing care omissions in the ICU includes nurses’ age, position, personnel relationships, average monthly income, satisfaction with the ward teamwork, frequency of patient safety education, and clinical leadership and safety attitudes (p<0.05). Conclusion: This study found that nursing deficiency in ICU is significant, affecting patient safety, nurse burnout, and nursing quality. Key factors include nurse age, position, and so on. It is recommended to strengthen clinical leadership training, improve safety culture, and optimize staffing to reduce nursing omissions and improve patient outcomes. It calls on health policies to pay attention to ICU nursing deficiencies and formulate support measures to ensure patient safety and nurse health.