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A Study of Adverse Events in an Intensive Care Unit in Morocco

Received: 28 January 2014    Accepted: 21 November 2014    Published: 25 November 2014
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Abstract

Adverse events in an intensive care unit can raise important medical, ethical, legal and economic problems. This study aims at pointing out these adverse events, by assessing their severity, identifying the very risk factors associated with them, and comparing our results with existing evidence-based data. Material and methods: This is a retrospective study in the intensive care unit of the Military Hospital of Instruction Mohammed V, at RABAT, carried out over a period of 3 years and half. Included in the study are medical records of patients with an adverse event (AE) during their hospitalization in the IC (Intensive Care) or elsewhere, and who required a stay in Intensive care. We excluded nosocomial infections and adverse events due to medicated side effects, as there is no conclusive evidence of the accountability of the event to the product. Results: The study focuses on 813 patients. 44 patients experienced at least one adverse event, with an incidence of 5.4%. They were dominated by those of respiratory type (34%), followed by cardiovascular events and neurological disorders. All events were considered as preventable. The identified risk factors were due to human errors in 95% of cases: mainly, careless mistakes. The consequences of adverse events were of varying severity, with a mortality rate of 39% and a residence time of 12 days on average, comparable to those of other patients without iatrogenic complications. Conclusion: In our study, AE are dominated by events of respiratory type, and human error is the main associated factor. The specific impact of these events on prognosis is difficult to assess because they occur in serious situations. The monitoring of AE may constitute a care quality indicator.

Published in American Journal of Nursing Science (Volume 3, Issue 6)
DOI 10.11648/j.ajns.20140306.12
Page(s) 100-104
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Adverse Event, Risk Factor, Severity, Iatrogenic

References
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[16] Queneau P, Chabot JM, Rajaona H, Boissier C, Grandmottet P. Iatrogenic disease observed in a hospital setting. II. Analysis of causes and suggestions for novel preventive measures. Bull Acad Natl Med 1992; 176: 651-64.
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Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Hicham Bakkali, Salahedine Massou, Mohamed Moutaoukil, Khalil Aboulaala, Hicham Balkhi, et al. (2014). A Study of Adverse Events in an Intensive Care Unit in Morocco. American Journal of Nursing Science, 3(6), 100-104. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20140306.12

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    ACS Style

    Hicham Bakkali; Salahedine Massou; Mohamed Moutaoukil; Khalil Aboulaala; Hicham Balkhi, et al. A Study of Adverse Events in an Intensive Care Unit in Morocco. Am. J. Nurs. Sci. 2014, 3(6), 100-104. doi: 10.11648/j.ajns.20140306.12

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    AMA Style

    Hicham Bakkali, Salahedine Massou, Mohamed Moutaoukil, Khalil Aboulaala, Hicham Balkhi, et al. A Study of Adverse Events in an Intensive Care Unit in Morocco. Am J Nurs Sci. 2014;3(6):100-104. doi: 10.11648/j.ajns.20140306.12

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ajns.20140306.12,
      author = {Hicham Bakkali and Salahedine Massou and Mohamed Moutaoukil and Khalil Aboulaala and Hicham Balkhi and Charqui Haimeur},
      title = {A Study of Adverse Events in an Intensive Care Unit in Morocco},
      journal = {American Journal of Nursing Science},
      volume = {3},
      number = {6},
      pages = {100-104},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajns.20140306.12},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20140306.12},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajns.20140306.12},
      abstract = {Adverse events in an intensive care unit can raise important medical, ethical, legal and economic problems. This study aims at pointing out these adverse events, by assessing their severity, identifying the very risk factors associated with them, and comparing our results with existing evidence-based data. Material and methods: This is a retrospective study in the intensive care unit of the Military Hospital of Instruction Mohammed V, at RABAT, carried out over a period of 3 years and half. Included in the study are medical records of patients with an adverse event (AE) during their hospitalization in the IC (Intensive Care) or elsewhere, and who required a stay in Intensive care. We excluded nosocomial infections and adverse events due to medicated side effects, as there is no conclusive evidence of the accountability of the event to the product. Results: The study focuses on 813 patients. 44 patients experienced at least one adverse event, with an incidence of 5.4%. They were dominated by those of respiratory type (34%), followed by cardiovascular events and neurological disorders. All events were considered as preventable. The identified risk factors were due to human errors in 95% of cases: mainly, careless mistakes. The consequences of adverse events were of varying severity, with a mortality rate of 39% and a residence time of 12 days on average, comparable to those of other patients without iatrogenic complications. Conclusion: In our study, AE are dominated by events of respiratory type, and human error is the main associated factor. The specific impact of these events on prognosis is difficult to assess because they occur in serious situations. The monitoring of AE may constitute a care quality indicator.},
     year = {2014}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - A Study of Adverse Events in an Intensive Care Unit in Morocco
    AU  - Hicham Bakkali
    AU  - Salahedine Massou
    AU  - Mohamed Moutaoukil
    AU  - Khalil Aboulaala
    AU  - Hicham Balkhi
    AU  - Charqui Haimeur
    Y1  - 2014/11/25
    PY  - 2014
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20140306.12
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ajns.20140306.12
    T2  - American Journal of Nursing Science
    JF  - American Journal of Nursing Science
    JO  - American Journal of Nursing Science
    SP  - 100
    EP  - 104
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2328-5753
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20140306.12
    AB  - Adverse events in an intensive care unit can raise important medical, ethical, legal and economic problems. This study aims at pointing out these adverse events, by assessing their severity, identifying the very risk factors associated with them, and comparing our results with existing evidence-based data. Material and methods: This is a retrospective study in the intensive care unit of the Military Hospital of Instruction Mohammed V, at RABAT, carried out over a period of 3 years and half. Included in the study are medical records of patients with an adverse event (AE) during their hospitalization in the IC (Intensive Care) or elsewhere, and who required a stay in Intensive care. We excluded nosocomial infections and adverse events due to medicated side effects, as there is no conclusive evidence of the accountability of the event to the product. Results: The study focuses on 813 patients. 44 patients experienced at least one adverse event, with an incidence of 5.4%. They were dominated by those of respiratory type (34%), followed by cardiovascular events and neurological disorders. All events were considered as preventable. The identified risk factors were due to human errors in 95% of cases: mainly, careless mistakes. The consequences of adverse events were of varying severity, with a mortality rate of 39% and a residence time of 12 days on average, comparable to those of other patients without iatrogenic complications. Conclusion: In our study, AE are dominated by events of respiratory type, and human error is the main associated factor. The specific impact of these events on prognosis is difficult to assess because they occur in serious situations. The monitoring of AE may constitute a care quality indicator.
    VL  - 3
    IS  - 6
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Military Training Hospital Med V, Rabat, Morocco; Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University Med V, Rabat, Morocco

  • Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Military Training Hospital Med V, Rabat, Morocco; Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University Med V, Rabat, Morocco

  • Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Military Training Hospital Med V, Rabat, Morocco; Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University Med V, Rabat, Morocco

  • Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Military Training Hospital Med V, Rabat, Morocco; Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University Med V, Rabat, Morocco

  • Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Military Training Hospital Med V, Rabat, Morocco; Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University Med V, Rabat, Morocco

  • Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Military Training Hospital Med V, Rabat, Morocco; Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University Med V, Rabat, Morocco

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