Iatrogenic complications in adult intensive care units

Abstract

Major iatrogenic complications were frequent, associated with increased morbidity and mortality rates, related to high or excessive nursing workload, and were often secondary to human errors. To improve patient safety in our ICUs, preventive measures should be targeted primarily on the elderly and the most severely ill patients. Special attention should be given to improving the organization of workload and training, and promoting wider use of noninvasive monitoring.