Table 1. Baseline Characteristics After Matching for Admissions With Many vs Few Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Beds Available at Time of Assessment for ICU Transfer.
| Variable | Many ICU Beds | Few ICU Beds | Standardized Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. of admissions | 4596 | 4596 | NA |
| No. of ICU beds available | |||
| Mean (SD) | 7.64 (2.67) | 1.68 (1.13) | 2.905 |
| Median (range) | 7 (5-19) | 2 (0-3) | NA |
| Transfer to ICU, No. (%) | 1995 (43.4) | 1521 (33.1) | 0.213 |
| Age, mean (SD), y | 65.23 (17.68) | 65.00 (17.35) | 0.013 |
| Male, No. (%) | 2426 (52.8) | 2448 (53.3) | −0.010 |
| Reported sepsis diagnosis, No. (%) | 2868 (62.4) | 2873 (62.5) | −0.002 |
| CCMDS level of care at visit, No. (%) | |||
| 0 | 496 (10.8) | 604 (13.1) | −0.072 |
| 1 | 3247 (70.6) | 3162 (68.8) | 0.040 |
| 2 | 755 (16.4) | 792 (17.2) | −0.022 |
| 3 | 54 (1.2) | 30 (0.7) | 0.055 |
| Missing | 44 (1.0) | 8 (0.2) | 0.105 |
| Periarrest, No. (%) | 233 (5.1) | 164 (3.6) | 0.074 |
| Acute physiological scores, mean (SD) | |||
| NEWSa | 6.18 (3.12) | 6.28 (3.05) | −0.030 |
| ICNARC physiology scoreb | 15.07 (7.40) | 15.23 (7.12) | −0.021 |
| SOFA scorec | 3.14 (2.19) | 3.16 (2.15) | −0.011 |
| NEWS risk class, No. (%) | |||
| None | 117 (2.5) | 128 (2.8) | −0.015 |
| Low | 1244 (27.1) | 1150 (25.0) | 0.047 |
| Medium | 1287 (28.0) | 1304 (28.4) | −0.008 |
| High | 1948 (42.4) | 2014 (43.8) | −0.029 |
| Time of admission, No. (%) | |||
| Weekend | 1172 (25.5) | 1059 (23.0) | 0.057 |
| Outside of regular hours | 1549 (33.7) | 1649 (35.9) | −0.046 |
| Winter | 960 (20.9) | 960 (20.9) | −0.000 |
Abbreviations: CCMDS, Critical Care Minimum Data Set; ICNARC, Intensive Care National Audit & Research Centre; NA, not applicable; NEWS, National Early Warning Score; SOFA, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment.
a
The NEWS ranges from 0 (least severe) to 20 (most severe).
b
The ICNARC physiology score ranges from 0 (least severe) to 100 (most severe).
c
The SOFA score ranges from 0 (least severe) to 14 (most severe).