British journal of nursing (Mark Allen Publishing)
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The admission of intensive care unit (ICU) overflow patients in the post anaesthesia care unit (PACU) has come about as a result of an increasing demand for ICU services, which is not followed by a respective increase in the number of available beds. This has raised many concerns from nurses, with extensive workload and lack of personnel being the most important. This study was conducted in the General University Hospital of Patras, Greece, from 1 January 2003 to 30 June 2004. ⋯ PRN scores of these ICU patients were much higher than for post anaesthesia patients. Clinically important increases of total PRN score, total care time and nursing personnel needs were evident in the presence of an ICU overflow patient during all shifts. Unless there is the appropriate number of personnel, increases in total care time are likely to lead to the neglect of post anaesthesia patients' needs.