Artificial intelligence applications in intensive care unit nursing: A narrative review (2020-2025)

To synthesize recent research on artificial intelligence (AI) in intensive care unit (ICU) nursing from 2020 to 2025, highlight trends, and outline integration challenges.

A narrative synthesis approach was used, reviewing English-language studies from PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and IEEE Xplore. From 4138 articles, 37 studies were included.

Evidence was international with strong contributions from Asia and North America. Most studies were retrospective and drew on large ICU databases such as MIMIC-III/IV and eICU. Methods were dominated by machine learning, with limited but growing deep learning. Applications clustered around early warning and risk prediction, with additional work on nursing decision support and workload or documentation support. Reported discrimination frequently exceeded AUC 0.80, while calibration, external validation, and human factors evaluation were less often described.

Artificial intelligence shows promise for earlier risk recognition, decision support, and workflow enablement in ICU nursing. Priorities include multicenter prospective evaluation, external validation with calibration, electronic health record-embedded implementation, and nurse codesign to ensure safe, useful, and generalizable tools.

Thoughtfully integrated AI can support timely decisions and reduce documentation burden when paired with real-time validation and nurse-led workflow adaptation.