INTRODUCTION Studies in intensive care unit (ICU) patients have suggested that anemia and blood transfusions can influence outcomes, but these effects have not been widely investigated specifically in surgical ICU patients. METHODS We retrospectively analyzed the prospectively collected data from all adult patients (>18 years old) admitted to a 50-bed surgical ICU between 1st March 2004 and 3...

SUMMARY A consecutive series of 106 upper gastrointestinal endos-copies on a general surgical firm is reviewed. Early endoscopy provided a diagnosis in 86% of patients with Gl bleeds. In patients with a firm radiological diagnosis of duodenal ulcer or gastro-oesophageal reflux, endos

The change of death from a moral to a technical matter has come about for many reasons based in social evolution and technical advance, and the effects on the dying have been profound. When death is imminent, recognition, avoidance, denial, and readiness can all go hand in hand for the patient, family members and professional staff. Often, no one is ready and death still comes. This is why one ...

Even in the information-rich environment of hospitals, health-care providers face challenges in addressing their various information needs. Through a study of a patient-care team in a tertiary care Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU), we expanded our understanding of health-care providers' information needs in two important ways. First, the study focused on a patient-care team instead of indivi...

BACKGROUND In addition to mortality, Health Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) has increasingly been claimed as an important outcome variable. The aim of this study was to assess HRQOL and independence in activities of daily living (ADL) six months after discharge from an Intensive Care Unit (ICU), and to study its determinants. METHODS All post-operative adult patients admitted to a surgical IC...

Ultrasound scan (USS) is a common and important mode of investigation for emergency surgical admissions. Delay in investigation often leads to delayed diagnosis and treatment, and possible extended length of stay (LOS), which has clinical, cost and service provision implications. We aim to investigate the clinical impact on patient care and the cost-effectiveness of a pilot Surgical Assessment ...

BACKGROUND Preventable deaths due to errors in trauma patients with otherwise survivable injuries account for up to 10% of fatalities in Level I trauma centers, 50% of these errors occur in the intensive care unit (ICU). The root cause of 67% of the Joint Commission sentinel events is communication errors. The objective is (1) to study how critical information degrades and how it is lost over 2...

The manual extracapsular extraction of the lens is the surgical technique that is most practiced for the treatment of cataract in sub-Saharan Africa. Learning this technique requires the creation of a surgical simulation unit within training institutes. We describe the development stages of a traditional simulation unit. For this purpose, we present a description of four steps involved in the d...

Early in 1947 the Surgical Professorial Unit of the Bristol Royal Hospital under the direction of Professor Milnes Walker started the surgical treatment of cases of hypertension. This report concerns thirteen patients who were operated upon in 1947 and 1948, and whose post-operative course has been followed to the present day. Cases dealt with in 1949 and 1950 have been excluded from this discu...

OBJECTIVE We aimed to describe the pattern of nosocomial infections in an adult medical-surgical intensive care unit (ICU). SUBJECTS AND METHODS A 2-year prospective cohort study of nosocomial infection surveillance in a 15-bed adult combined medical and surgical ICU of Farwaniya Hospital, Kuwait, was carried out. Data were collected between January 2004 and December 2005 using the standard s...