Most nurses (79 percent) in the ICU agree that tele-ICU systems enable nurses to improve patient care, according to findings published in the American Journal of Critical Care.

Many of the more than 1,200 nurses who responded to the online survey also agreed that tele-ICU systems also improve their job performance.

"Tele-ICU experience is one of the most unique fields that I have worked so far, and it has a vast potential in terms of reaching out and enhancing patient safety and care," according to one respondent. Another said, "Tele-ICU competency is a great need. The multiple skills required are a mix of common and unique skills."

There are about 45 tele-ICUs that connect more 200 hospitals and 6,000 beds in the U.S. and it's estimated that between 800 to 1,000 nurses practice in tele-ICUs and another 16,000 interface with these units.

Tele-ICU is defined as technological innovations that use audio, visual or a combination to remotely monitor critical care in intensive care units.

The systems allow providers to remotely review patient vital signs, physiological status and laboratory and diagnostic test results and make care decisions based on these conditions. Telehealth can also be used for remote consultations from expert practitioners across the country to improve patient outcomes.

According to the survey, 63 percent of ICU nurses said tele-ICU enables faster work performance; about 66 percent saw improvement in collaboration; 64 percent found it improved job performance; 60 percent said it improves communication; and another 60 percent said it helps with nursing assessments.

Nearly half of respondents said telehealth allows for more time for patient care.

Respondents named the biggest benefits to tele-ICU as the ability to monitor vital sign trends, provide medical management, enhance patient safety and detect unstable physiological status in patients.

To continue and exand these benefits, continued discussion and education are crucial as well as increasing the understanding of its use amongst nursing staff, according to the authors, led by Ruth Kleinpell, PhD, RN, director of the Center for Clinical Research, Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, and professor at Rush University College of Nursing. 

Kleinpell et al reported that the biggest barriers are staff attitudes, audio and video problems and the belief that telemedicine interferes with care. "These findings can be used to further inform the development of competencies for tele-intensive care nursing," they wrote.

Healthcare institutions can "match the tele-intensive care nursing practice guidelines of the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses and highlight concepts related to the association's standards for establishing and sustaining healthy work environments," they advised.