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To analyse current Glasgow Coma Scale practice among emergency nurses in China and identify factors influencing assessment quality.
A quantitative, multicenter cross-sectional design.
A convenience sample of 1740 emergency nurses from secondary and tertiary hospitals across 21 provinces completed a validated structured questionnaire between March and April 2025. Participants had at least 6 months of emergency nursing experience. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and multiple logistic regression to examine factors influencing correct Glasgow Coma Scale application.
Participants had a mean age of 29.8 years (SD = 6.2). Only 52.5% of nurses demonstrated correct Glasgow Coma Scale application despite 97.0% having theoretical knowledge of scoring criteria. While 56.8% had received Glasgow Coma Scale training, significant standardisation deficiencies emerged. Notably, 41.8% of departments lacked operational guidelines, and 53.7% of nurses experienced scoring disagreements with colleagues. Clinical utilisation varied substantially by patient population: traumatic brain injury (97.8%), neurological diseases (96.9%), and systemic critical illness (85.8%). Multivariate analysis identified six significant factors influencing correct application: standardised training (OR = 2.252, 95% CI: 1.789–2.825), manageable workload ≤ 4 patients/shift (OR = 1.652, 95% CI: 1.327–2.057), departmental guidelines (OR = 1.523, 95% CI: 1.233–1.881), extensive work experience ≥ 9 years (OR = 1.534, 95% CI: 1.182–1.992), while multidisciplinary collaboration issues (OR = 0.559, 95% CI: 0.439–0.712) and special patient experience (OR = 0.520, 95% CI: 0.406–0.666) were associated with reduced accuracy.
Substantial standardisation challenges exist in Glasgow Coma Scale practice among Chinese emergency nurses, characterised by significant gaps between theoretical knowledge and clinical application. Major barriers include insufficient standardised guidelines, inconsistent training approaches, and inadequate interdisciplinary collaboration.
Healthcare administrators should develop national standardised guidelines, implement simulation-based training programs, optimise emergency workflows, and integrate alternative assessment tools to enhance consciousness assessment accuracy and improve patient safety.
STROBE statement adherence.
No patient or public contribution.
To validate a practical method for estimating total Glasgow Coma Scale (etGCS) scores in intubated traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients and evaluate its reliability when integrated into established ICU severity scoring systems.
TBI is a global health issue, often leading to high mortality and disability. The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), essential for assessing TBI severity, is less reliable in intubated patients due to the inability to assess verbal responses.
Retrospective cohort study.
Data were extracted from the MIMIC-IV database. The reliability of the etGCS was evaluated through its association with in-hospital mortality and its performance when integrated into established ICU severity scoring systems. Multiple statistical approaches were used to validate the findings.
Among 886 intubated TBI patients, the etGCS showed consistent reliability in predicting in-hospital mortality (AUC: 68.22%, 95% CI: 64.29%–72.14%). When combined with pupillary assessment (etGCS-P), the predictive performance remained stable (AUC: 71.99%, 95% CI: 67.89%–76.08%). Furthermore, the estimation method demonstrated reliable performance when integrated into established severity scoring systems. The removal of etGCS from these systems resulted in decreased predictive performance, confirming its valuable contribution to mortality prediction.
This study validated a practical and reliable method for estimating total GCS scores in intubated TBI patients. The estimated scores showed consistent predictive value and enhanced existing severity scoring systems, supporting its clinical utility in ICU settings.
This validation of a practical GCS estimation method supports nurses in delivering accurate patient assessments, facilitating clinical communication and making informed care decisions for intubated TBI patients.
This retrospective study involved no patient or public participation in the design or conduct.
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