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Original ArticleOpen Access
Unplanned Admission to Siriraj Post-Anesthetic Intensive Care Unit
Toomtong P 
,
Vorakitpokatorn P
,
Vorakitpokatorn P Objective : Notice of all surgical patients who need access to Siriraj post-anesthetic inten-
sive care unit (ICU) must be given to the ICU in advance by the surgical team. However, there are
some patients who present unexpectedly, and we would like to evaluate this unplanned ICU admis-
sion as a quality control.
Patients and Method : We performed a self-reported study of the patients who were
categorized as unplanned for ICU admission over a six-month period from June I" to November 30'\
2001. We attempted to quantify these patients into small groups in order to learn what the reasons
were, where they came from, and how big the anesthesia-related reasons can be.
Results : There were 520 admissions to the ICU during study period, and of those 80 were
unplanned patients. The major source of these patients is from the operating theaters, followed by the
recovery rooms and surgical wards. There were 65 patients admitted because of the cardiopulmonary
problems, while 13 patients were admitted for close observations; surgical complications made up
another 8 patients. Overall there were 36 unplanned patients because of anesthesia-associated com-
plications.
Conclusion : These results indicate that the patients who are admitted to the post-anesthetic
ICU without prior planning can provide insights of ICU resource management, and the standards of
perioperative management in the operating theatres. It definitely offers an opportunity to implement
changes in our anesthetic practice. We will continue to monitor the impact of this important indicator.
Key word : Surgical Patients, Medical Audit, Unplanned ICU Admission, Anesthetic Complications
sive care unit (ICU) must be given to the ICU in advance by the surgical team. However, there are
some patients who present unexpectedly, and we would like to evaluate this unplanned ICU admis-
sion as a quality control.
Patients and Method : We performed a self-reported study of the patients who were
categorized as unplanned for ICU admission over a six-month period from June I" to November 30'\
2001. We attempted to quantify these patients into small groups in order to learn what the reasons
were, where they came from, and how big the anesthesia-related reasons can be.
Results : There were 520 admissions to the ICU during study period, and of those 80 were
unplanned patients. The major source of these patients is from the operating theaters, followed by the
recovery rooms and surgical wards. There were 65 patients admitted because of the cardiopulmonary
problems, while 13 patients were admitted for close observations; surgical complications made up
another 8 patients. Overall there were 36 unplanned patients because of anesthesia-associated com-
plications.
Conclusion : These results indicate that the patients who are admitted to the post-anesthetic
ICU without prior planning can provide insights of ICU resource management, and the standards of
perioperative management in the operating theatres. It definitely offers an opportunity to implement
changes in our anesthetic practice. We will continue to monitor the impact of this important indicator.
Key word : Surgical Patients, Medical Audit, Unplanned ICU Admission, Anesthetic Complications
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