Death rates have been declining for critically ill patients in intensive care units (ICUs), but a new U.S. study suggests gains have been limited at hospitals with large numbers of minority patients, writes Reuters.
Data on almost 1.1 million ICU patients at more than 200 hospitals from 2006 to 2016 show a steady annual 2% decline in ICU death rates at hospitals with few minority patients, but not at hospitals where at least one-fourth of patients were Hispanic or African-American.
African-American patients also appeared to fare better at hospitals that served fewer minorities. Mortality rates for this group fell 3% each year at hospitals with few minority patients while remaining fairly constant at hospitals serving large numbers of minorities, researchers report in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
Read more:
- Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-minorities-critical-illness/icu-death-rate-higher-in-hospitals-primarily-serving-minorities-idUSKBN1ZJ2AR
- Temporal Trends in Critical Care Outcomes in United States Minority Serving Hospitals. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. 17 January 2020