Mapping Cardiac Intensive Care Units in Greece: Infrastructure, Staffing Ratios, and Advanced Support Availability.

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Intensive Care Medicine
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Cardiac intensive care units (CICUs) manage complex cardiovascular illnesses.
• National data on Greek CICUs' infrastructure, staffing, and support are limited.
• A nationwide survey aimed to map the status of CICUs in Greece.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the current state of Cardiac Intensive Care Units (CICUs) across Greece.
• To identify infrastructure, staffing, and advanced support availability in Greek CICUs.
• To provide data for potential improvements in critical cardiac care nationwide.

Main Methods:

• A survey questionnaire was distributed to hospitals within the Greek national health system.
• Data on infrastructure, staffing, and available advanced support were collected.
• Statistical analysis was performed to identify predictors of CICU characteristics.

Main Results:

• 70% of hospitals have a dedicated CICU; 53% of CICUs have 6-10 beds.
• Nurse-to-patient ratios often fall below 1:3 during afternoon and night shifts, even in tertiary centers.
• Cardiovascular intensivists staff only 21% of CICUs; advanced support like CRRT and IABP is more common in tertiary centers.

Conclusions:

• Greek public hospitals' CICUs require improvements in nurse-to-patient ratios and the number of cardiovascular intensivists.
• Aligning CICU operations and staffing with international standards is recommended.
• Enhancing CICU resources can advance acute and critical cardiac care nationally.