Abstract: Objective: To investigate the status quo of missed nursing care in ICU and analyze the causes, so as to provide a reference for reducing ICU missed nursing care and improving the quality of nursing for critically ill patients. Methods: Cross-sectional design was used with convenience sampling. A total of 305 ICU nurses were selected from 5 hospitals in Hunan province from December 1 to 30, 2023. General data questionnaire and ICU missed nursing care scale were used for investigation. Results: The ICU missed nursing care score was 64.48±20.60, and 91.8% of nurses reported that at least one missed nursing care was found during their work. The most missing items were psychosocial assessment, early rehabilitation, psychological care, assessment of patient muscle strength and assessment of patient nutritional status. Educational background, professional title and type of ICU were the factors affecting the ICU missed nursing care (P<0.05).The score of the causes of missed nursing care was 61.29±16.28, with the main reason being insufficient nurse human resources. Conclusion: Missed nursing care is common in ICU, which is influenced by many factors. It suggests that nursing managers should pay attention to the status quo and causes of missed nursing care in ICU, and take corresponding measures to further improve the quality of ICU nursing.

Key words: missed nursing care; critically ill patients; nurse; nursing quality; patient safety