S0020 [Source: Lundgrén-Laine & Suominen (2007). Intensive and Critical Care Nursing 23(2): 97-103.]
A retrospective study of 1,737 patients in an intensive care unit was performed to examine factors associated with nursing intensity and patients classification. Nursing intensity depends on patients' need for care and it indicates the nursing workload caused by the patients' caring needs. It was measured on a continuous scale from an established instrument. Some results from the study are summarized below:
The mean and median duration of a patient's intensive care were 4.1 days and 1.5 days, respectively.
The age and sex of intensive care patients showed only a weak statistical correlation with nursing intensity (Spearman correlation coefficient=0.12; p=0.03)
The p-value for the association between nursing intensity and types of intensive care (operative and non-operative) was 0.41.
Questions:
Q1. Both the mean and the median duration of a patient's intensive care were reported. Is one preferable to the other? If yes, why?
Q2. The Spearman correlation coefficient was wrongly used in certain analyses. What are they? Why?
Q3. Are you satisfied with the information provided? If not, what addition information would you like to be reported?
Q4. Apart from correlation, what analysis can be performed to examine the effect of age on nursing intensity?
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