Table 2.
Characteristics of Surgical Patients in the Study Hospitals, Overall and by Educational Composition of Staff Registered Nurses*
| All Hospitals (N = 168) | Percentage of the Hospital Nurse Workforce With BSN or Higher Degrees | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| <20% (n = 34) | 20%–29% (n = 53) | 30%–39% (n = 36) | 40%–49% (n = 26) | ≥50% (n = 19) | ||
| Total patients, No. (%) | 232 342 | 24 766 (10.7) | 54 366 (23.4) | 58 329 (25.1) | 47 955 (20.6) | 46 926 (20.2) |
| Age, mean (SD), y | 59.3 (16.9) | 61.3 (16.9) | 60.8 (13.7) | 58.9 (17.1) | 59.0 (16.9) | 57.3 (16.8) |
| Men, No. (%) | 101 624 (43.7) | 10 350 (41.8) | 23 298 (42.9) | 25 369 (43.5) | 20 891 (43.6) | 21 716 (46.3) |
| Emergency admissions, No. (%) | 63 355 (27.3) | 4691 (18.9) | 15 495 (28.5) | 16 535 (28.3) | 13 583 (28.3) | 13 051 (27.8) |
| Deaths within 30 days of admission, No. (%) | 4535 (2.0) | 582 (2.3) | 1170 (2.2) | 1057 (1.8) | 911 (1.9) | 815 (1.7) |
| Patients with complications, No. (%) | 53 813 (23.2) | 5731 (22.9) | 12 439 (22.9) | 13 278 (22.8) | 10 551 (22.0) | 11 814 (25.2) |
| Deaths among patients with complications (failure to rescue), No. (%) | 4535 (8.4) | 582 (10.2) | 1170 (9.4) | 1057 (8.0) | 911 (8.6) | 815 (6.9) |
| Major diagnostic categories (MDCs), No. (%) Vascular surgery (MDC 5) |
11 194 (4.8) |
1006 (4.1) |
2275 (4.2) |
2610 (4.5) |
2307 (4.8) |
2996 (6.4) |
| Digestive system (MDC 6) | 54 919 (23.6) | 6728 (12.3) | 13 159 (24.0) | 13 377 (24.4) | 10 898 (22.7) | 10 757 (22.9) |
| Hepatobiliary system (MDC 7) | 29 660 (12.8) | 4050 (13.7) | 6909 (12.7) | 8138 (14.0) | 5651 (11.8) | 4912 (10.5) |
| Musculoskeletal system (MDC 8) | 118 945 (51.2) | 11 124 (44.9) | 28 515 (52.5) | 30 256 (51.9) | 25 019 (52.2) | 24 031 (51.2) |
| Skin, subcutaneous tissue, breast (MDC 9) | 12 771 (5.5) | 1390 (5.6) | 2634 (4.8) | 3156 (5.4) | 3015 (6.3) | 2576 (5.5) |
| Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases and disorders (MDC 10) | 4853 (2.1) | 468 (1.9) | 874 (1.6) | 792 (1.4) | 1065 (2.2) | 1654 (3.5) |
| Comorbidities, No. (%) Hypertension |
79 827 (34.4) |
8524 (34.4) |
19 243 (35.4) |
18 604 (31.9) |
16 726 (34.9) |
16 730 (35.7) |
| Diabetes mellitus | 31 385 (13.5) | 3705 (11.8) | 8001 (14.7) | 7207 (12.4) | 6294 (13.1) | 6178 (13.2) |
| Insulin-dependent diabetes | 3607 (1.6) | 420 (1.7) | 785 (1.4) | 949 (1.6) | 700 (1.5) | 753 (1.6) |
| Cancer | 28 558 (12.3) | 3050 (12.3) | 6438 (11.8) | 6425 (11.0) | 6121 (12.8) | 6524 (13.9) |
| Chronic pulmonary disease | 19 819 (8.5) | 2566 (10.4) | 5251 (9.7) | 4670 (8.0) | 4063 (8.5) | 3269 (7.0) |
| Congestive heart failure | 11 795 (5.1) | 1445 (5.8) | 2899 (5.3) | 2688 (4.6) | 2313 (4.8) | 2450 (5.2) |
| Arrhythmia | 3965 (1.7) | 444 (1.8) | 973 (1.8) | 886 (1.5) | 856 (1.8) | 806 (1.7) |
| Aortic stenosis | 2248 (1.0) | 235 (.9) | 498 (.9) | 574 (1.0) | 479 (1.0) | 462 (1.0) |
| Board-certified surgeon | 170 063 (73.2) | 16 324 (65.9) | 37 580 (69.1) | 45 178 (77.5) | 37 053 (77.3) | 33 928 (72.3) |
*
All characteristics differed significantly across the groups of hospitals at the P<.001 level, according to an F test (in the case of age) and χ2 tests (in all others).