Mobility in a Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit: A Behaviour Mapping Study

May 24, 2025 from 2:05pm EST to 2:35pm EST

Mobilization by ambulation or cycling within 24 hours post-cardiac surgery (CS) is associated with improved physical health outcomes, is safe, and is guideline-recommended. Despite these points, no observational studies explore mobility post-CS in the CS intensive care unit (CSICU). This study used behaviour mapping to observe and describe patterns of patients’ mobility in one CSICU over sixteen hours (0630-2230 hours) on two weekdays and two weekend days. Two observers collected patient mobility mode, location, and support data at 15-minute intervals. Data were aggregated into four-hour time blocks. A total of 1342 observations were made over four days: 487 of mode, 485 of location, and 370 of support. Sitting in a chair was observed 430 of 487 mode observations, 10-fold more than any other mode. Mobility within the CSICU room was observed in 448 of 485 location observations. Bedside nurses were the most common healthcare providers observed supporting mobility with 142 of 370 observations. The prevalence of observations of sitting in a chair and the lack of observations of ambulation and cycling raises questions about the clinical goals and rationale of early mobility. Reframing early mobility for clinical cardiovascular nurses is one part of shifting clinical practice to move beyond sitting in a chair. This presentation aims to have cardiovascular nurses reflect on their clinical early mobility practices to begin to support practice changes. As the most common healthcare professionals supporting mobility, cardiovascular nurses are the key drivers to operationalizing these changes to mobility and improving patient health outcomes post-CS.

Speakers / Panelists

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    Emily Phillips
    RN, MN, PhD candidate, CCN(c)