Improving the ICU

ICUs are a vital component of modern health care. Improving ICU performance requires that we shift from a paradigm that concentrates on individual performance to a different paradigm that emphasizes the need to assess and improve ICU systems and processes. This is the first part of a two-part treatise. It discusses existing problems in ICU care, and the methods for defining and measuring ICU performance.Learning Objectives1. Improving ICU performance requires a shift from a paradigm that focuses on individual performance to one that emphasizes improvement in ICU systems and processes. 2. Defining and measuring performance in the ICU requires cumulative data to calculate relevant summary measures of performance. Detecting individual adverse events (errors) is not sufficient.