Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

This study is important to contribute to the management of the adequate number of nurses in the Intensive Care Unit, considering the institutional cost of human resources. Based on patients' demands of nursing activities it is possible to measure the adequate number of nurses to attend their needs and promote the quality of supervision and nursing care. This study proposes the discussion about the adequate number of nurses within institutional possibilities without burdening the cost of assistance and at the same time offering quality of care. The close contact with critically ill patients puts nurses in a privileged position to know the required nursing activities and investigate appropriate allocation strategies to promote a better outcome. The study was developed in 5 ICU of two institutes from Québec for 14 days. We applied the Nursing Activities Score (NAS) instrument to measure nursing activities demanded by patients and calculate nurse to patient ratio. The 4ICU presented the highest mean NAS justified by the patients' characteristics and nursing activities required for surveillance (items 1c), mobilization (item 6), administrative tasks (item 8), vasoactive drugs (item 12). Even so, the 4ICU had the lowest mean of nurse to patient ratio, reinforcing the need to make investments in the number of nurses. The HEJ also had the lowest mean of nurse to patient ratio, but the lowest mean of NAS. The 6ICU had the highest mean of nurse to patient ratio and good results to attend patients' demands. The HSFA and 3ICU had the exact proportion of nurses to attend the needs of patients.