title: Improving the ICU: part 1.
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, MetroHealth Medical Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, 2500 MetroHealth Dr, Cleveland, OH 44109, USA. agarland@metrohealth.org
authors.forename: Allan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Garland
mesh_terms: D003422:Critical Care / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D005260:Female; D005544:Forecasting; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006302:Health Services Research; D017052:Hospital Mortality / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D008297:Male; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care; D017749:Total Quality Management; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology