Delirium is a deleterious condition affecting up to 60% of patients in the surgical intensive care unit (SICU). Few SICU-focused delirium interventions have been implemented, including those addressing sleep-wake disruption, a modifiable delirium risk factor common in critically ill patients.

Using a staggered pre-post design, we implemented a quality improvement intervention in two SICUs (general surgery/trauma and cardiovascular) in an academic medical center.

After a pre-intervention (baseline) period, a multicomponent unit-wide nighttime (i.e., efforts to minimize unnecessary sound and light, provision of earplugs and eye masks) and daytime (i.e., raising blinds, promotion of physical activity) intervention bundle was implemented.

A daily checklist was used to prompt staff to complete intervention bundle elements.

Six hundred and forty-six SICU admissions (332 baseline, 314 intervention) were analyzed. Median [IQR) age was 61 [49, 70] years with 35% females and 83% white race.

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