[Factors associated with nursing workload in adult intensive care units]

This study was aimed both at analyzing the nursing workload on the first day of admission of patients in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and the factors associated with it. This is a qualitative, retrospective, cross-section study that was carried out in April of 2002 and October of 2004. The data were taken from a database that gathered information from 5 ICUs from two private hospitals and the sample was comprised of 214 adult patients that remained in the ICU for at least 24 hours. The total Nursing Activities Score (NAS) average was 69.9%, and the median 68.0%. According to the median, it was verified that 109 (50.9%) individuals required heavy nursing attention and the remaining 105 (49.1%) required less attention. The severity of the illness, the patient's age and the kind of treatment were not factors associated with nursing workload in the first 24 hours at the ICU.