Omission of nursing care, professional practice environment and workload in intensive care units

The present study aimed to characterize the omission of nursing care according to the nurses' perception, the professional practice environment and the nursing workload of intensive care units (ICU) in Brazil. Additionally, the influence of the practice environment and nursing workload on such omission was assessed, as well as the type of care omitted regarding priority classification.

In order to ensure patient safety and quality of care, it is necessary to invest in improvements in nursing care practices.

The present cross-sectional study was performed in three large ICU in Brazil. The omission of nursing care was identified using the MISSCARE-BRASIL instrument, and the environment and duration of professional nursing practice were analysed using the Practice Environment Scale (PES) and Nursing Activities Score (NAS), respectively.

"Ambulation three times a day or as prescribed" was the form of care reported as the most omitted in the three studied units. The reasons for not performing care included the following: inadequate number of staff, inadequate physical blueprint of the unit/sector and the professional having more than one employment relationship. Upon characterizing the work environment in the ICU according to the PES, ICU 1 and 3 were considered "mixed" environments, whereas ICU 2 was considered a "favourable" environment.

The professional practice environment, as well as the workload, may constitute predictive factors for the omission of care.

The nursing workload and practice environment influence the omission of care. Moreover, the establishment of criteria for the prioritization of care when faced with adverse work conditions is necessary.